The Wave
by Writer207
Summary: The first was Experion, then came Skylar Storm, also eight or more others. Those were the first who unwillingly joined his army, and there are many more to follow. But what to do when you can't tell if someone has joined the wave of evildoers? What to do when you can't trust anyone? AU, eventually Skoliver / strong Kaz/Oliver friendship
1. Prologue

**Welcome to my second MM story here. It won't be a sequel to my first story (which won't have a sequel) but I promise to try and make it just as good. Practically, this story starts after the events of the episode 'Lair, lair', so there will be spoilers all over. I got this idea after watching the episode and will be an AU continuation of that episode. That being said, I hope to get a bit of feedback for this story, so I know how to improve and what you guys think of this. It's just a chort chapter to start with, but I still hope you...**

**...Enjoy!**

**-Writer207**

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><p>He was laying on something hard.<p>

When he opened his eyes, he knew immediately where he was: three hundred miles bellows Mighty Med. He recognized it because of the small space in the rectangular rooms, in which he now was laying. He got up, and touched the force field, which made an out-of-tune noise. Only then, he noticed the three people standing there.

Oliver Pyne, the smarter of the two Normos who once had been his sidekick. Kaz Gordon, the dumber of the two who idolized him. Skylar Storm, the superhero who recently got her powers and his colleague when it came to serving the Annihilator.

"Let me out of here," Tecton said with a powerful voice. Oliver and Kaz leaned back because of the power, but Skylar didn't flinch. She just stood there, arms crossed, strict look in her eyes… she was good at acting like she was a hero. She shook her head.

"We got you, Tecton," she said, "After I caught you trying to steal those powers and hide them somewhere safe, I beat you and we discovered you were a mole all along." Tecton put his best evil look on and glared at the three teens before him.

"I should've known you were too clever to see past my lies." Skylar shrugged and gave him a smile you'd give to the person you were working with but the others didn't need to know that.

"Why, dude, why!" Kaz almost shouted before Oliver had placed a hand before his best friend's mouth. Tecton sighed.

"I can't help it! It was the Annihilator; he did this to me!" He tried to sound convincing, and he did. He had tried to not only sound convincing, but like the victim. And he was pretty good at it. He might have considered taking a course on acting when saying that, but his top priority was escaping, freeing the Annihilator and dominate the world.

"We can't help him now, Kaz," Oliver said, "We don't know how we can save him. For now, we just have to wait and hope Horace can get rid of whatever is making him believe he's working for the Annihilator." They talked with each other, too, before finally leaving Skylar alone with Tecton. He hadn't been listening to their Normo talk anyway, but he was waiting for those to leave so he and Skylar could have a talk. When they were sure the Normos and anybody else wouldn't be able to hear them talk, she gave him an evil grin.

"Thanks for joining us," she said. He shrugged.

"It's not like I had much a choice, but I'm glad you did this to me. It feels good… even better than being a good person."

"For now, you'll have to wait. I'll tell you what you'll have to do when the Annihilator has come up with a plan to succeed in our schemes." Tecton nodded and saw how Skylar just walked away from him without saying goodbye. Okay, he might just have turned evil, but that didn't mean Skylar could just boss him around. He sighed and sat down on the cold hard plate that was supposed to be his bed. He should give the staff a suggestion: softer, nicer beds. That could help a lot and make a prisoner's life at least a little enjoyable.

"Hey, you!" a too familiar voice shouted from ten meters next to him. "You're lucky to have the Skylar Storm visit you! Last time, those Normos visited just my cellmates. Nobody's coming for me!" Tecton sighed. He had hoped to never hear that voice again, but they are sworn enemies and would probably meet him more.

"Shut up, Leslie! I'm trying to think over here!" A long time, there came no response. Tecton almost laughed – how he'd wish to see Megahertz's face right now! – but decided not to, so he wouldn't offend his fellow villain.

"Tecton?" came the surprised answer, "Is that you?"

"Who else could it be?" he replied, and another silence followed. Tecton guessed Megahertz needed time to process all this information. He was part cyborg, after all, so he hoped he didn't just fry his circuits with telling him he was at the Mighty Max. Hopefully Leslie understood Tecton was here as a prisoner, and by hearing his laughs Tecton guessed Leslie understood.

"You? A prisoner?" was what Megahertz could say about it between the laughs. Tecton rolled his eyes, not wanting to wait until Megahertz was done with laughing.

"Are you almost done?" he asked the villain, sounding very bored. Eventually, Megahertz stopped laughing and continued to interrogate his number one nemesis. Tecton didn't like that, but it was better than hear your nemesis laugh at a failure/success.

"Why are you here?" Tecton shrugged, even though Megahertz wouldn't be able to hear it.

"Same old, same old. I was caught trying to steal superpowers from the Annihilator. I won't say more."

"What is wrong with you?" Tecton clearly could hear the confusion and the disbelief in Megahertz's voice. He was probably confused because it was Tecton of all people who had tried to steal those powers, and the disbelief was 'cause he had tried to steal from the Annihilator. He used those two emotions to tell him indirectly he had gone crazy because you just don't steal from the Annihilator, who has countless deaths on his name, and not only heroes and Normos have died because of him.

"Nothing is wrong with me, Leslie," Tecton said, "I'm feeling better than ever, that's all!"

"Don't call me Leslie!" Megahertz shouted back.

"You can't hurt me," Tecton replied with a taunting voice and then just ignored his nemesis. There were others things that required his focus. Like that one important mission Skylar indirectly told him about. He was trying to figure out what they expected him to do, when and where and also why. That 'why' was asked by the small part inside of him that was still good.

Tecton ignored that good part and started scheming.

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><p><strong>Also, Happy Halloween!<strong>


	2. Starting slowly

**This is the first chapter of the Wave, which was the only title I thought of fitting... Anyway, as the title of this chapter suggest, we're starting things slowly. So far, I have at least 20 chapters planned, but it could be more. Before we go to the actual chapter, first the review to the previous chapter:**

_BTRlover1122: Really? That's great! I hope that for you too! My favorite hero is NeoCortex, and thanks for that first review!_

**Enjoy!**

**-Writer207**

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><p>One week.<p>

For one week, Kaz had been thinking. He wasn't just thinking about multiple topics he didn't care about, but those thoughts were about one thing: Tecton. You see, it has been one week since they threw the Halloween party in the high school and one week since they saved Snowstorm's life. But sadly, that also meant it was one week after Skylar figured out Tecton had become evil and possibly worked for someone else, maybe the Annihilator. Still, he couldn't be sure.

That one week of thinking about Tecton's motives and everything he had done prior to his imprisonment hadn't really helped him, though. How hard he tried, he couldn't figure out when the Annihilator – or someone else – had the chance to turn him evil. He had reread every Tecton comic book he could find, especially the ones prior to him joining the Mighty Med staff, and could find nothing that was hinting at Tecton being evil.

And those thoughts were dominating him when he was walking into the school building. He almost didn't notice Oliver was talking to him until Oliver shouted his name in his ear.

"What's going on? You've been really distracted lately," Oliver said, and Kaz shrugged.

"It's Tecton. I've read every comic I know and in none of them Tecton became a bad guy. And I asked Ambrose if he remembered anything of Tecton becoming evil but he wouldn't tell me anything!" Oliver sighed. He really appreciated Kaz wanted to help the hero, but this was like that time when he definitely wanted to find out why Brain Matter disappeared from the public. Yet, as long as Kaz didn't forget to shower Oliver didn't complain.

"Ambrose is very busy," Oliver told his friend, "but right now, there are more important matters. I have to pass this science test or I'm grounded!" Kaz patted his friend on the back. Sometimes, Oliver worried too much about getting good grades. Kaz did too, only he didn't really care to study most of the time and just copy his answer from someone else.

"Relax, Oliver! You're great at science, why do you worry so much?" Kaz asked.

"Because I didn't have the time to learn because of those emergencies the past days," Oliver said, picking out his science book out of his backpack and he quickly tried to study what he was supposed to study at home. Kaz sighed and started to look around.

"Hey guys!" They were greeted by Gus. Jordan was walking towards them, too, but she didn't acknowledge he was standing right there and completely ignored him like she usually did. Gus, on the other hand, shuffled closer towards Jordan, hoping to be noticed by the blonde.

"Where's Connie?" Jordan asked, "Wait, let me guess… she's still a little ill, isn't she?" Oliver nodded. Skylar hadn't showed up at school lately. She told the boys she was needed at the Mighty Med because of Horace and his tests on her, so she couldn't come to school. Horace didn't want to talk about it and Alan didn't want to confirm this, so they had no idea if her story added up or not. But they liked to believe it was Horace's tests which were keeping her away from school.

"Yes, she's still not feeling well. Too bad, she's missing a lot!" he said, knowing Skylar had to catch up with all of her classes when she came back. Oliver would probably help her whenever he could and

"Wish her a good recovery from me!" Gus said, heading to his first class of the day. Yet, Jordan stayed and watched with her suspicious look the two boys she really had befriended over the years. Eventually, Kaz looked up and noticed Jordan hadn't left.

"Is there something wrong, Jordan?" he asked and she nodded.

"Yes, there is. Just the other day, I saw her walking and she was acting weird." Kaz didn't know what to reply, but luckily there was Oliver to help him our – or else he would have just said 'fire' a lot of time and Jordan would know they were hiding something, even more than she already guessed. He looked out of his science book.

"Really? She was just going out for a walk and she gets a little pissed off when she's ill." Now, he hoped Skylar had acted like she was pissed off when Jordan met her. Jordan seemed to buy it and then also went to her classroom. Oliver sighed and Kaz looked at Oliver.

"What was Skylar doing outside?" he asked and Oliver shrugged, gaze fixed on his textbook.

"She probably has her reasons. We go to the Domain every day too and maybe she wanted some alone time." Kaz nodded. Yeah, that probably was it. She's been hanging around in the hospital too long and might have needed some fresh air and accidentally reacted pissed off when she saw Jordan. Stuff like that could always happen. You don't even want to know what Kaz is like when he's had no connection with the internet for two full hours…

"Why does she actually spend not much time with you anymore?" he later questioned after watching his watch. They still had a few minutes before class began. Oliver sighed.

"I don't know. Now would you mind? I'm trying to study."

"It's not that I'm complaining, it just seems weird. Maybe she needed some time for herself. Or," Kaz argued with himself, "maybe she's planning a party for our birthdays. No, that can't be, that's in May. No, wait, I've got it! She could just go for a run or a flight in the park, stretching her limbs like she couldn't in the Mighty Med. She could've also done it to get away from Alan. You gotta admit, he is annoying if you spend too much time with him. Or maybe…"

"Kaz!" Oliver cut him out," Please!"

"I can't help it you don't wanna talk. But you gotta admit, I'm making some really good points here, aren't I?" Oliver sighed again, shut his locker and then walked to his class. He didn't even bother to say 'goodbye', even if it was out of context and even if Kaz was a little annoying. Kaz shrugged and grabbed his stuff. When he heard the bell, he knew he'd be late for English again.

But then again, when wasn't he late for English?

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><p>Skylar Storm was brilliant.<p>

Not only could she go to the Mighty Max whenever she pleased thanks to her powers of camouflage/invisibility and portal creation, but she also continuously fooled the guards who passed by during her daily visits to the Annihilator. Not a day has passed without her visiting her master to tell him what was happening up there in the Mighty Med. From time to time, when Tecton asked, she would tell him this isn't the right time, but the Annihilator didn't know that.

And he definitely hated being imprisoned. Even though they all helped beating him, even Skylar Storm, and then he was sent down there but not after Skylar Storm showed signs of being enslaved. He was taken down there, in the cell closest to the Earth's core, to make sure he had to pass all the guards before reaching the outside world. Plus, they had taken away his cannon and the force field keeping him in was practically unbreakable.

Yet, he was more than willing to wait if it meant a good plan would be formed. Since he was there, he could make plans and schemes without having to look out if Normos walked into his secret lair.

Skylar Storm was also a better help than Experion ever was, and that guy had helped him for a longer time. He couldn't ignore the fact Experion failed bringing Skylar to him that one time and he also knew his friendship with Skylar made him help those Normos into his lair. When he saw that idiot of a Calderan the Annihilator would punish the boy for his deeds, but for now, he was looking forward to Skylar Storm visiting him.

And there she was! Out of a space portal she stepped and greeted the Annihilator.

"What's the news?" he asked her.

"Everything is going according to the plan," she told him, "the bait's been set and nobody suspects a thing. I've made sure we've got at least three more." The Annihilator nodded. He liked her immediate obedience, unlike that other Calderan…

"Good work," he told her, "Make sure nobody sees him and that the others keep their cover, or else this plan fails." Skylar Storm nodded and created another portal. Tecton was held a few levels higher than the Annihilator, at the same floor as Experion and Megahertz. He knew she would do immediately as he had said and they knew she wouldn't be caught – she managed to create a loop in the security cameras – with a little help – and knew they wouldn't realize this until they inspected their reliability this week. She quickly jumped to the floor she knew Tecton was held. Without making too much noise, she walked closer, passing one other cell before she could reach Tecton'. That cell held two of the villains she knew best: Experion and Megahertz.

"Skylar?" she heard Experion say. She almost stopped walking to look at him, but soon decided not to do that. He did not take part of her objective and so she did not need to focus on him. Yet, that little focus she gave him was to tell him to shut up so none of the guards would sense something was about to go wrong. Megahertz said something, but she wasn't paying attention. To be sure, she made herself invisible.

She did this action right on time. Two guards ran past her to see what commotion the two villains were creating, and a smile lay on her lips. Those two would probably be separated again, placing them in cells with other villains. That combination should have to work, or they might directly become those limited edition action figures Horace once talked about. Eventually she had to wait a while before those guards were gone and the disagreement was settled. When she was sure nobody would be seeing her, she turned visible again and knocked on Tecton's force field.

Tecton thought it was just a stupid guard. Even though he had officially done a bad deed, they still respected and loved him for the things he has done. Just the other day, one of the guards gave him an extra portion of beans. Tecton had been very grateful, because they didn't get much here. If they didn't have too much power or were hungry, the guards would have an easier job of recapturing the escaped villains. So yeah, it had been a big surprise to see Skylar Storm standing in front of his cell with a malicious smile.

"It's time," she said, and Tecton nodded, getting up from his 'bed' and waiting for Skylar to do what she was sent there to do.


	3. About comic books and freedom

**Hey guys! Here's the second chapter of the Wave, and I would like to wish Carlos Lacámara (Horace Diaz) a happy birthday, who will be celebrating his 56th birthday today! And now, this chapter after I have responded to this one review: **

_BTRlover1122: I know, Horace can only freeze time and we don't know how this will end, but I'll try to stick as close to the show as I can. Thanks for the review!_

**Enjoy!**

**-Writer207**

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><p>After school, Oliver was even more stressed. He succeeded to make the test, but now he was continuously thinking about Skylar or his test results. He claimed to think more about his test results, but Kaz suspected he was thinking more about Skylar thanks to him talking about why she wouldn't come to school since last week. Oliver immediately left for the Mighty Med, but Kaz wasn't in such a hurry and decided to stop by the Domain once more.<p>

It was kind of comforting, going there. It would feel like the old days, in which he would only worry about Oliver and Jordan (and, to an extent, Gus) and about when they next comic books about Tecton or the League of Heroes would come out. It was a big difference with the present. Now, Wallace and Clyde were a dangerous supervillain. Now, comic books told them who was currently at the Mighty Med. Now, they had superhero friend and could tell nobody of that.

When he walked into the Domain, there were no other customers, like always. The only other person here was Gus, and he stood behind the counter. Kaz slowed down and frowned when he saw Gus standing there, looking like he owned this place. Technically, it still was Wallace and Clyde's, but now they were in Mighty Max and separated, anyone could take this place, even if it was someone like Gus.

"Hey, Gus," Kaz said, not able to hide his surprise, "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, haven't you heard?" he said, "I run this place now."

"But you can't!" Kaz argued, "This is Wallace and Clyde's store, you just can't take it over!" Gus shrugged.

"Well, they're nowhere to be seen and since they never really leave the building and I've looked everywhere, I'm in charge!" Gus reasoned, and Kaz pulled up an eyebrow. Was that really the way Gus argued? If the owners aren't here, you can take it over?

"I'm not sure, but you just can't take this place over." Gus nodded, trying to prove Kaz wrong.

"Actually, I just did. My dad agreed to buy this store from the two, and since they hadn't contacted him, my dad just put some money on their account and gave this store to me again, with the clear rule not to turn it into a Chinese restaurant. So it's mine." Okay, Kaz needed time to register all that new information. Gus was rich, he knew that already. He also knew it had been a Chinese restaurant once, and Wallace and Clyde working for them. And Gus' father bought the place and gave it to Gus… okay, he got it now.

"Okay then…" Kaz said slowly, "I'm just gonna look around now and…"

"Do you wanna buy a comic book?" Gus asked, holding up a comic book Kaz had never seen before. Kaz sighed, not immediately paying attention to the comic in Gus' hands.

"Gus, we both know I never bought a comic in this store and that's never going to happen," Kaz said, and he was about to walk away, but he did turn around because he was curious about the comic book he didn't exactly look at. "What's it about?" He was about to take the comic book out of Gus' hands, but the weird boy quickly pulled his arm away and put the comic book safely behind his back.

"You can't read it!"

"Why can't I read it?"

"Because you didn't buy it!" Kaz was getting irritated. A lot of things would change with Gus in front of the counter. It meant he could go to the bathroom in the Cauldron of Krepulon, but he had to buy a comic book now before he could take a look at it.

"I've read so many comics without buying them! C'mon, can I at least take a look at it?" Kaz plead, and Gus seemed to think about it. He hoped the weird kid would let him at least take a look at it, so he'd know if it's worth lying for. Eventually, Gus shook his head.

"No. like I said, you didn't buy it so you can't read it." Kaz sighed. He couldn't believe Gus was doing that to him after all they've been through together. Like all those time he and Oliver had to save their oblivious friend from the dangers they brought with them to their homes and school. Then, a plan came to his mind.

"This is how you're going to sell it?" Kaz asked and Gus nodded.

"Yep," he said, popping the 'p', "I'm going to earn a lot of money here!"

"But," Kaz then continued, "Nobody will buy anything if they don't even know what it looks like or what happens. It's like a drive-in: you order something and after you paid for it, you get it! Comic book stores don't need to work like that!" it's a poor comparison, but it was the only thing he could think of right now. And, luckily for Kaz, Gus believed it.

"You're right," he admitted, "How come I didn't think of that?" Kaz shrugged.

"I dunno. But if I borrowed that comic book and if I look at it at home, I can decide whether to buy it or not!" Gus nodded slowly, eventually thinking it was a great plan. He revealed the comic book and gave it to Kaz.

"Just make sure you don't make a mess. This one is rare, there were only twenty made of this one." Kaz left the Domain with his new free comic book, which was also a rare, meaning that when he had read it, he could sell it for a lot of money!

He quickly opened it and flipped through the pages. It was one hero he hadn't heard of in a long time, namely Optimo. He was doing something uninteresting with a rusty old knife, and Kaz put the comic in his backpack.

"Man, that comic is even older than Captain Atomic!" In reality, that comic was just a year older than Alan Diaz, but that was just a minor detail Kaz didn't exactly pay attention to. But he knew it was rare, because this is one of those few comic books made after his marriage, and the series had ended six months after his wife had baby and he joined the Super-Secret Heroes in Hiding.

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><p>Today had been just like any other day according to Alan Diaz. Waking up, getting breakfast, hanging around the hospital, making the lives of the patients miserable, get a lunch, hanging around the hospital, making the lives of the patients miserable, … it was literally always the same. There was nothing that differed, except the weekly attack on the hospital.<p>

Yet, when he had gone to that Halloween party… it was simply wonderful. Not only had he set foot out of the hospital for a change, but he had also learned to know Normo teenagers and their quirks, strengths, weaknesses and habits. He had learned so much about them as much as they should have learned from him if they had known he wasn't a Normo. He had been lucky the Dark Warrior, Incognito and the others were willing to come along, or else he wouldn't have been there at all.

He liked going there. It was a place like that where his father had gone to school, where he had completed his studies and eventually came to live in that small apartment. Normally, he should be the one to go to that school, too. Not because he would really like going there with the work he's seen Oliver and Kaz do, but to feel more connected to his father's side of the family, even if he had only seen his father once and the only thing he knows from him is his first name and that he's a Normo.

Just for the experience he'd go.

Now he thought of it, he should talk to Horace right away! I couldn't be too bad, right? He might have been a little mad when he found out Alan had gone to that Halloween party, but this was just school. That wouldn't be bad. And after a while, Horace would eventually let him go – if he wasn't allowed to go, he'd just sneak out as much as he could to go to that school.

And to think of all the things he could learn there. He'd finally be able not to make any more mistakes towards English. He'd be taught about the guy who discovered America and that guy who defined gravity and that other guy who invented that sport. Only that thought proved Alan needed proper education and he knew he'd get it at a Normo school.

That's why he immediately walked around, looking for his uncle Horace. Alan had some places to go: he normally was in the lobby, the cafeteria, meeting room – or the 'limbo room' as Alan started to call it – but he could also be somewhere else.

He first checked the cafeteria. He wasn't there. Then he went to the limbo room, and there he also couldn't find his uncle. Alan was starting to get a little impatient and almost started running around, but he wasn't exactly in shape and decided not to go running. Instead, he would ask anyone who passed by if they'd seen his uncle – that was a lot easier.

The first person to pass by was Philip. Alan sighed – he didn't exactly like the guy with the big head who thought he had an embarrassingly tiny head. There wasn't much of a choice and nobody else would pass by, so he just took the chance.

"Hey, Philip!" he drew the attention of the helper, "Do you know where Horace is?" At first, he seemed shocked. Probably because someone asked him to do something while looking at him, and because they normally just thought they asked someone else to help, not poor Philip.

"He is in the lobby," he pointed in the direction of the lobby and Alan left him without saying thanks, but Alan wouldn't have thanked the person he asked anyway. He quickly walked to the lobby and indeed found his uncle Horace standing there, talking to a nurse. Suddenly, the nerve to ask fell away for a big part. He had no idea why that happened, but he knew that it was now or never. If he waited too long, he'd never ask. This was the perfect time.

He took a deep breath and walked towards Horace. "Hey, Uncle Horace!" he said, greeting him and making sure Horace knew his obnoxious nephew was talking to him. Horace looked up and saw Alan standing there.

"Hey, Alan," Horace said, "How are you doing?"

"Can I go to a Normo school?" Alan immediately asked, almost interrupting his uncle. Horace was taken aback by that question, mostly because Alan already knew the answer.

"Off course you can't go!" was Horace's answer. Alan shrugged. He had already expected such answer, so he wasn't really impressed. Instead he just tried to say something else about it, but Horace was just a little quicker than he was. "You're not going to a Normo school, Alan! It can be dangerous out there, and if you're scared, they might see you changing. Besides, you can learn everything you need here – from me and from the others. So the answer's a no!" Horace walked away, making it the end of the discussion.

"This is so unfair!" Alan yelled, and immediately knew what to do. Before anyone knew what he was doing, he searched for the closest Normo school in the environment, the place he would be going to the next morning. He wouldn't be registering himself – he knew his uncle would get him out of there even if he had registered himself. So, he'd be going to that school 'illegally'; that's what he thought it was.

_Watch out, Normos,_ he thought, '_cause I'll be going to school with you tomorrow!_


	4. The big surprise

**Welcome to the third chapter of the Wave, with - as the title suggests - a big surprise for the Med. But before we go to that new chapter, first I'll respond to the review:**

_BTRlover1122: Oh, an invention makes much more sense... and I should mention English isn't my first language, so thanks for pointing out that mistake. If Horace is 3005 (or 3006) years old, he should be born around 990 BC, which is for me already enough explanation for his educational level__. And thanks for the review! _

**Enjoy!**

**-Writer207**

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><p>When Kaz headed towards the Domain, Oliver had decided to go to the Mighty Med already. Kaz had – as usual – noticed Oliver was stressing, but he lied to him it was because he thought he failed his test. He had no idea why he lied to his best friend, but there was no fooling Kaz when he was thinking about Skylar. So, in fact, even if Oliver lied about thinking about Skylar, Kaz would know. Still, it's not so good to lie to his best friend.<p>

He tried not to think about that when he went to the janitor's closet and into the Mighty Med. Even though they had saved everyone's powers just a week ago, nobody had ever bothered to thank them, except for Snowstorm. Oliver didn't really care about that – they saved lives every day and almost never were thanked – but Kaz made a really big point out of it. He recalled Kaz saying them not thanking them is just a sign they simply didn't dare to thank the two greatest Normos in the world.

He went to stand behind one of the desks, looking at his task list. He didn't focus completely, though. His mind kept wandering off to Skylar and the reasons why she didn't go to school. Kaz did give some reasons, but that didn't mean they were true. For now, he believed she was just avoiding this place because it might be time to leave Earth and resume her duties as a hero after a year without her amazing powers. Maybe she couldn't bear going there, knowing she had to leave all of that behind to go back home. Goodbye was always the hardest when you've really grown to like someone on that hostile planet you're stranded on.

When he looked up, Skylar was there. She walked in, looking beautiful like always. She smiled at Oliver, and he smiled back. It almost hurt too much to see her in her possibly last days on this planet before the only connection to her would be the comic books and this hospital. He hoped she would visit, though, even with that healing factor of her.

"Hey Oliver! How's it going?" she asked. And he shrugged.

"Same old, same old. I'm very sure I failed my science test," he replied, "Anyways, while I was studying, we noticed you haven't been going to school last week, and we were wondering why you're not coming anymore." Skylar looked as if she was sorry, as if she was holding some information she wouldn't share with the others.

"You're not keeping secrets, are you?" Oliver asked, and Skylar quickly shook her head.

"I would never keep anything from you!" Skylar said, and Oliver nodded. What was he thinking? Off course Skylar would keep no secrets from them! They've been friends for more than a year! They beat many villains together, along with the Annihilator – even though she did most of it with that villain. Sure they wouldn't keep secrets from each other.

Skylar looked around, looking for someone, until she turned her head back to Oliver, "Where's Kaz?" Oliver shrugged.

"He went to the Domain first. I don't know why, but it's probably not that important." He said and right at that moment, Kaz walked in with a comic book. Oliver knew it had to be a comic book, because his best friend didn't even look up while walking in this superhero hospital. He almost just walked past them, but he did look up when Oliver shouted his name in his ear.

"Oh, there you are," Kaz said, "Look at this!" He showed Oliver the cover of the comic book he was holding. Oliver looked at it, and immediately recognized the leader of the Super-Secret Heroes in Hiding on the cover. He looked up at Kaz when he realized he did not recognize this cover, nor could he remember reading this one comic book.

"You have a new Optimo comic book? Where did you get it?"

"First: it's not new, it's quite old," Kaz said, "and I got this from Gus. Did you know he's running the Domain now and that there are only twenty copies of this comic book?" Kaz put it away, and then looked at Skylar. "Say, how are you actually doing? We haven't seen you at school for a week." Skylar looked uncomfortable again, but soon this expression faded from her face.

"Oh, since my powers are working just fine and I'm leaving when Horace has finished with the tests, I gotta go back to Caldera and I won't be able to go to school here anymore. I'll come back one of these days to tie up some loose ends, but that's it." She sounded genuinely sorry, but both boys knew there was no other way.

_Then, the alarm blared and a hero who needed medical attention immediately was rolled in. that hero happened to be NeoCortex, who looked very beaten up. Oliver immediately took his concern for the man – it's the least he could do since he almost killed him._

_"NeoCortex, what's wrong?" Oliver asked, and NeoCortex' eyes widened when he saw Kaz and Oliver coming closer._

_"Oh no," he said, "Something bad always happens when I get treated by you two guys!" Oliver sighed, but Kaz misunderstood what the psychic hero was saying. He thought NeoCortex meant the doctor working at the hospital._

_"First of all, it's doctor You-two-guys," Kaz said, "and she's already treating those two guys!" He pointed at the other side of the lobby, where doctor You-two-guys was treating two heroes. NeoCortex sighed – if this was the best help he could get in a short time, the Normos had to do._

_"Fine! I was attacked by Spark Plug and the Silver Shield."_

_"What?" Kaz reacted, "They're superheroes, why would they attack you? Did you roll your eyes and sigh at everyone?" then, the hero did the exact same thing Kaz just described – he rolled with his eyes and sighed._

_"I do not!" he said in his defense, "Anyway, I read their minds right before Spark plug shorted out my powers. They're both working for the Annihilator now."_

_"Oh no!" Oliver said, "Do you know what this means?" Oliver asked, and immediately got a response from his best friend._

_"Your Spark Plug movie needs a quick rewrite?" Kaz suggested._

_"No!" Oliver reacted and he explained everything to Kaz, "Spark Plug and the Silver Shield were both at Mighty Med yesterday. Maybe there's a mole here who's secretly working with the Annihilator and turning superheroes evil!"_

_"Some people!" Skylar exclaimed, "Shame on them! Shame. On. them."_

**_(I do not own anything written in italics – it belongs to the owners)_**

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><p>The Mighty Med was in a mighty mess no three hours later. Alan suddenly can turn other people in turtles, agent Blaylock has been turned in a statue and NeoCortex was turned evil without knowing who it was. Despite the trap Oliver and Kaz had placed, they could not record who it was because it bugged up. This made them believe Wi-Fi could be a suspect, even though he still was in his USB-prison. Hopefully.<p>

And Oliver had become cautious. There was nobody he could trust, except the few people who would never betray him. That is why he wouldn't dare to blame Kaz – one, he was always close to Oliver and second, he loves superheroes enough not to make them evil. And Oliver would've known if his best friend suddenly was evil. Another person he dared to trust was Skylar Storm, yet not as much as he dared to trust Kaz. Skylar would most certainly try to find a way to make sure the heroes turned good again and would desperately try to find out who was making them evil and making them work for the Annihilator. He also dared not talk about this situation until they were in an environment where they could talk in private without anyone important spying on them, like school or at home.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Kaz asked Oliver when they were about to go home. Oliver looked at Kaz.

"What's wrong? Kaz, did you pay attention? Blaylock is a statue, there's someone running around turning heroes evil and we lost one of the most important heroes to them, too!" Oliver sighed "I just wished we could catch that person who made NeoCortex evil." Kaz put his hand on Oliver's shoulder.

"Oh, c'mon, it can't be that bad. Okay, they might have NeoCortex now, but we've got at least a hundred other heroes who still are good guys. They can totally overpower that small group of newborn villains."

"That's what I'm worrying about," Oliver said, "We don't know who the mole is. It can be anyone who comes here frequently enough. And about the heroes… who knows how many the Annihilator has under his control. Promise me not to trust anyone with this, okay? If we talk about it and the mole is close by, we're doomed."

"No problem!" Kaz said, "I'm not telling anyone." They continued their way to the lobby, when suddenly the alarm blared and some guards ran past them, to the lobby, where the next villain had found its way into the main lobby of the superhero hospital. Kaz and Oliver slowed down, so they wouldn't have to walk straight into the big fight between guards and the villain. They did notice the lack of shouts and they also found it strange Skylar ran to them instead of just fighting the villain herself. With her powers, she would easily take him down, whoever it was.

"Guys…" she began, looking at them, "Tecton's back." Oliver and Kaz stared at Skylar, not really understanding what Tecton was doing here. Unless… he escaped from Mighty Max!

Kaz, Oliver and Skylar ran down the hallway and came to the lobby, where Tecton was held down by five guards and Philip, who just had been promoted and now worked as a guard. Horace was standing at the side, ready to freeze Tecton. The hero wasn't doing anything offensive, nor was he doing anything that looked defensive. He just stood there, allowing the guards to keep him in check. And he also was trying to talk to them with a calm voice.

"… and if that isn't enough proof, you can always take off my glove. No, really, I'm not lying, you can bring Mesmera here and you can hypnotize me and I'll tell you I'm good." He didn't shout, he didn't yell. He just talked, even suggested something which could blow his cover.

"Wait!" Oliver shouted, having an idea after hearing Tecton say those words. "Let me take a look at him." Most staff members and guards were looking at him as if he was crazy, but they allowed it anyway. Tecton was only allowed to put out his arm and keep it straight – if he moved it, he'd be tasered by an enthusiastic Philip, who really loves his new job. Oliver (and Kaz) came closer, and when they were standing at a safe distance, Oliver removed the glove. The sign, that once had clearly been white, was now purple again.

It took the two Normos at least a whole minute to decide whether this sign was a fake or not. "It's real," Oliver eventually concluded, "It's no longer white, meaning he shouldn't be evil anymore." You could easily hear Oliver did not trust this situation, but others (as Kaz) were willing to believe a miracle had happened. Even Horace came closer, but not as close as Kaz and Oliver. You never knew.

"I wanna hear an explanation for your deeds," Horace said, "You get only one chance, or else you can spend the rest of your days in Mighty Max!" You heard the chief of staff hated to say these words. He'd rather have Tecton as a hero and not a villain, and if he was telling the truth, it was better than when he was lying.

Tecton began to talk. "Okay then. It started when I was fighting the Crimson Demon and his brothers. It was before Kaz and Oliver started to work here. After I locked them up in the lower dimension, I was ambushed by the Annihilator. He used my own powers against me and when I was laying on the ground, he turned me evil. He also had a free-lance sidekick, Experion, but he didn't need more than one of those, so I became a mole. I had to tell him everything I knew about everything I picked up and was important enough for him to know.

I hate being a mole, I really do. I still performed some good deeds, like fighting Megahertz and saving this place multiple times, but I still worked for the Annihilator. It was killing my good side from the inside out. The worst part is that I remember everything I've done and felt the previous year. I am sorry, Horace, I am truly sorry.

One of the worst things I had to do was my last task as his servant. I had to tamper with the other stolen powers in his lair, to make more evil heroes to command. Luckily, Skylar showed up and defeated me, so I was stopped and couldn't tamper with them. Because of her, the heroes who got their powers back aren't evil now.

I was sent to Mighty Max, and my good side – or what was left of it – began to scorn me. _You don't belong in a cell, _that voice said,_ you're a hero and they are no prisoners of the good guys. _This is the part where I thank Megahertz for laughing at me. If he hadn't laughed, I wouldn't have felt humiliated and my good side wouldn't have won it from the bad side. I guess after all that time, the Annihilator's influence on me has worn off a bit. That is probably why my good side saved me."

"One more thing," Horace asked after he realized Tecton would say no more, "how did you get out of prison."

"Philip let me out," Tecton said, "I told him the story, too, and I showed him my mark. He believed it and set me free. Too bad the other guards didn't hear the story until now." He pointed at the five other men surrounding him. Horace still looked a bit suspicious, and he turned to Philip.

"Philip, is that true?" he asked and the guard nodded.

"Yes, sir," answered the man with the big head, "He was all those time in his cell and there is no way he has access to something to conceal a white mark with. So yes, it's true." Kaz and Oliver thought Philip really seemed to have more confidence now he was a guard and very important. Horace looked back at Tecton.

"I've heard enough. Tecton…" he grabbed Tecton's right hand and shook it, "Welcome back!"


	5. At the dining table

**Hey there, guys! Here's the fourth chapter of the Wave and while I am considering giving this story another title, Kaz and Oliver head home after a strange afternoon at work. We'll tune in on them after I have replied to the reviews from last chapter:**

_BTRlover1122: __Thanks for the review! And I taught myself most of it (75%), the rest I learned at school. And about Tecton, only time will tell._

_4everMagic: Thank you for reviewing and following! You're supermegafoxyawesomehot!_

**Enjoy!**

**-Writer207**

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><p>It had been another long day at the Mighty Med, with another set of twists and turns they would have never expected. NeoCortex became evil, but at least they had Tecton back. Everyone was happy for him to have finally regained control, except for Oliver. He still didn't trust this, even if there was no evidence of him being evil. Yet, cautiousness was a gift in a situation like this.<p>

When Kaz and Oliver were about to go home, Tecton came walking towards them. Kaz greeted him happily, while Oliver just nodded, clearly wary of the big hero. "Hey, Tecton!" Kaz said, "Man, I'm glad you're not evil anymore."

"You and me both, Kaz," Tecton replied, "I just wanted to apologize. I know what I've done, I am sorry. Oliver, I should've never let you be my sidekick – I knew it would put you in danger, I knew the risks. I'm sorry, it was the Annihilator who thought of that plan."

"I forgive you," was the only thing Oliver dared to reply, and Tecton nodded.

"Well, that was it. Have a good night's sleep!" These were the last words Tecton said before leaving the Normos alone. Kaz wanted to talk a little longer to Tecton, but he was gone as quickly as he had arrived. Well, the little talk they had didn't have any other purpose but to apologize to Oliver, so there was no reason for him to stay longer with the two Normos who had saved his life multiple times.

Oliver shook his head watching Tecton leave. "I don't know about you, but I don't really trust him. He… who are you texting?" The topic of the conversation was changed when Oliver caught Kaz texting something. Kaz looked up from his phone.

"Oh, just your mom." Oliver raised an eyebrow.

"Why would you text my mom? How did you even get her number?" Oliver wanted to know. His best friend looked up.

"This is your phone." He said it with a matter-of-factly tone, but Oliver wasn't as surprised as he used to be. Kaz took a lot more stuff from him and sometimes, he gave it back. He couldn't give it back when it was eaten like the meat in the sandwiches. Oliver sighed.

"What do you need my phone for? You have your own."

"Yeah, but mine doesn't have your mom's number," was Kaz' argument.

"Why do you even text my mom?" Oliver wanted to know. Just as he said this, a new text came in. Kaz opened it, read it, and then handed over his best friend's phone to his best friend. He then smiled at Oliver, who had become a little cautious. _What did he do to my phone and why is he smiling, _was the thought crossing his mind. As if Kaz could read his mind, he answered these questions.

"I used your phone so I could ask your mom if I could stay with you tonight." Oliver's mouth fell open.

"You what?" he exclaimed. He already knew they wouldn't like Kaz staying with them, even if it's only for one night. His father was the worst when it came to school and everything else. He never saw what interests his son saw in those idiotic comic books with bright colors and fictional heroes and villains. He even told Oliver he wasn't allowed to go to the Domain and hang out with Kaz because they both were considered a bad influence!

Luckily for Oliver, his mother did appreciate the things her kid has done for Kaz and would love to learn more about the boy Oliver talked about so much whenever his father wasn't around. "What did she answer?" Oliver asked. Kaz replied with a smile which said enough.

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><p>"I'm home!" Oliver shouted when he opened the door to enter his house. Right behind him, Kaz walked in. Oliver still couldn't believe his mother agreed on having Kaz staying tonight. His dad would disapprove of it immediately, Oliver was sure of that. Why else wouldn't he want his son to be friends with someone like Kaz?<p>

When Oliver walked into the dining room, everything was ready, just like always when he returned from a day at work in the Med. The only difference with other school days was that there were four plates instead of three. His mother put the food in the middle of the table and his father was sitting at the table. This was one of the few times Oliver could actually see and speak his father, because he was a very busy man. And like always, he was already sitting at the table, reading the newspaper he couldn't read this morning and put it down to greet his son.

His smile immediately turned into a grimace when he saw that Kaz Gordon. He definitely didn't like that boy. And he noticed his son's awkward and nervous look when looking at his dad. This time he wouldn't get a 'hey Oliver, how was work today?' but something else. "What is he doing here?" no need to tell he disapproved of Oliver's friendship with this idiot and his big family.

"Charles," said Oliver's mother, "I said he could stay here for tonight." Charles Pyne slowly turned his head to the two teenagers standing there and he eventually sighed.

"Just this evening." Charles said, making clear Kaz couldn't stay here tonight, but Kaz planned on staying anyway, whatever Charles said. Kaz took this as an invitation to come and sit at the table. He placed himself at the plate farthest away from Charles. It might have been a coincidence, but Oliver liked this coincidence. That way, his father didn't come too close to Kaz and with Oliver between them, he could keep an eye on both. His mom took the last plate remaining.

"Oh French fries!" Kaz exclaimed when he saw what they were eating that evening. He put some on his plate and began eating immediately, without taking any vegetables and he didn't even notice the steak was also ready. After he put the first one in his mouth, he nodded. "Y' know, those Frenchmen were real geniuses!"

"It's not made in France," Charles said, raising an eyebrow and Kaz looked confused.

"But they're _French_ fries. How can they not be French?" Oliver mouthed 'stop it' to Kaz, but he either didn't see it or ignored his best friend's silent attempts to stop him before his father forbade him to see him, or grounded him. Charles sighed.

"They were made in Belgium." Charles said, and Kaz shrugged.

"Then why are they called 'French fries'?" Charles sighed and decided to give up, sending a glare at Oliver, who just looked at his plate and completely focused on cutting the meat. He hoped Kaz would just be quiet and wouldn't say anything else. Yet, he hoped too much because now his mother started asking questions.

"Why did you come over, Kaz?" she asked him. "I know there has got to be another reason than 'just staying with Oliver'." Oliver's eyes widened. Hopefully Kaz wouldn't say anything stupid. Now they saw each other the evening, they could restart the debate about Tecton's credibility, which wouldn't have to happen at school, where there are potential threats. You couldn't trust anyone, except those who would look at it as a fan boy's words like Jordan and Gus.

"My oldest brother is coming home today. Mom prepared a party to celebrate him coming back and invited a lot of family. I don't really like the pressure and now I'm here."

"Don't your parents miss you at that 'party'?" Charles asked, and Kaz shrugged.

"Nah. If I'm correct, there are about fifty relatives or more at home. They won't even know I'm missing. Maybe Kyle would notice… but he still has to be in jail for two months before he's released." Oliver mentally face-palmed. The one fact about Kaz's family which he had never told his father just came out of Kaz's mouth so easily it was unnatural. Again raised Charles his eyebrow and he looked at Oliver.

"I think we should have a private conversation when we're finished eating." It was a calm tone. It was his 'business' tone, the one he always talked in when treating patients and being important. He only used this tone when he would be talking about something serious. Last time he used that voice, he told Oliver his grandfather died and it had been just a few months before they met Skylar. Yet, that tone already made Oliver guess what they would be talking about.

"Oh! About what?" Oliver mentally face-palmed again. When he thought things couldn't get much worse…

* * *

><p>After fifteen minutes of silence, they all were finished. Kaz got up to their room and waited there for Oliver. He waited for at least a minute before he decided he wouldn't wait in boredom and he picked the Optimo comic and continued reading it. He had come to the fourth page and Optimo was doing some serious great stuff. Kaz laughed. Man, he liked the guy! <em>Why hasn't he showed up at the Mighty Med yet?<em> That was one of Kaz's main thoughts. He had no idea why he hadn't showed up.

That raised another question. This wasn't his last comic. Maybe in the very last of this series he was killed and thus couldn't take care of his wife and son anymore. Maybe he died a natural way and his son became a hero. And maybe that son had to make a very difficult decision, but in the end made the right one for himself and for the people around him.

Then Oliver entered his room. He was talking for five minutes before he realized Kaz was reading the comic and wasn't paying attention. He was surprised when Oliver pulled the comic book out of his hands. He protested, "Hey! I was reading it!"

"And I've been talking to you for the past five minutes," said Oliver, "I just have one question for you: isn't it suspicious Tecton suddenly is good again?"

"If I say yes, will you give me that comic book back?" was Kaz's reply and Oliver sighed. Sometimes his friend wasn't a great help. Yet, it didn't help he was in a bad mood after his father half hour long pep talk about Kaz and how unusual his family is and how he'd better try his best at school so he could become a doctor just like his old man. Oliver had nodded and wished he could tell his dad he was a doctor, one for superheroes, but he kept quiet and immediately went to his bedroom after his father was done talking.

"No," was his answer, "what's so special about this comic book anyway?"

"Well, it's about Optimo. Do you know him?"

"I've heard of him," Oliver admitted and Kaz nodded.

"Well, he's a cool new hero – no, wait, he's old. Anyway, he is just awesome! He fights crime with telekinesis and can fly and he has this very useful Dagger of Truth which he uses to make criminals tell the truth. He…"

"Wait!" Oliver suddenly exclaimed. "Say that again."

"That."

"No," Oliver said after his friend misunderstood the question. "I meant – can you repeat what you just said about Optimo." Kaz shrugged.

"He has a useful Dagger of Truth which he uses to make criminals tell the truth. Why do I need to repeat that?" Kaz wondered, but Oliver wasn't listening anymore. He was making a plan. It was just a small plan with not so much chances of succeeding, but it was a start.

"We've seen it," Oliver said and Kaz gave him a confused look, "I mean, the day we met Captain Atomic, we were searching through the box with lost and found. In there was Optimo's Dagger of Truth. If we find it, we can use it to make Tecton tell the truth. And all the others, too. We'll find out who the mole is!" Kaz nodded, finally getting what Oliver meant.

"Yeah, there's just a small problem. We found on a desk in the lobby and we haven't seen it since. We don't know where it is, how to use it or if it even works after all these years!"

"That doesn't matter. At least we have a chance." Oliver said, and he smiled. He didn't care what his father said. He didn't care if his father told him he'd be better off without Kaz, he'd better do some good in the world by studying hard, and he'd better become a doctor.

Oliver was better off with Kaz. He'll do some good by saving the people who save the people and he studied hard by reading every comic book imaginable so they could keep up with the latest hero news. He was already a doctor. And he was going to be saving humanity again by trying to find that Dagger with Kaz at his side.


	6. Normo school day

**Hello to the few who actually read this story! I'm going to tell you that my exams start the 4th of December and I probably will not update until the 17th because of those exams. And now that's out of the way, I'll reply to the review and you can read the chapter.**

_BTRlover1122:__ Me too... I really want to know more about her... anyway, we'll see where the dagger is and I don't think Oliver's dad abuses him. Personally, I imagine his dad is honest and kind and doesn't want his son end up with the wrong people (aka Kaz and his family) and tries to protect him. Plus, he might act strict because he wants Oliver to do the right thing.__ And thanks for the review!_

**Enjoy!**

**-Writer207**

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><p><em>Last night:<em>

"Oliver, please sit down." Charles Pyne said, and Oliver did as his father asked and sat on the couch, while his dad remained standing. Charles looked down upon his son, who obviously would rather be with his friend right now. But there comes a time a father needed to protect his son from a danger the young son could never see coming.

"First of all, I want you to know that all I want is the best for you." Oliver looked up.

"Then let me be friends with Kaz. It's what makes me happy." Charles sighed and looked at his boy. He hated this relationship. He hated not having enough quality time with him, which he would gladly spend with Oliver, with his only son. But his job sadly enough required him to be in the hospital most of the time, leaving Oliver in a world Mr. Pyne learned to know as hard, secretive, unforgiving and unpredictable.

"I know you and Kaz are good friends, but have you ever met his family?"

"Yes I have. They're really nice people," Oliver responded.

"I meant his older brothers. You have absolutely no idea how dangerous they can be. I don't want you to get hurt, Oliver, and that's why you'd better not hang out with Kaz." Now Oliver sighed, out of despair, hating his father for telling him he couldn't hang out with Kaz anymore.

"I can decide who my friends are by myself," he replied, "But that still doesn't explain why you don't want me to read comic books!" Charles sat down next to his frustrated son.

"Because they're ridiculous. It's just people in silly costumes trying to beat people in even sillier costumes. That doesn't make sense and I can't imagine teenagers believe in this kind of nonsense." Oliver suddenly laughed. He's nervous, Charles guessed.

"I don't think they're real, dad." _No, I know they're real. There's a difference._ Charles sighed out of relief and put his hand on Oliver's shoulder.

"That's a good thought, Oliver, and I'm glad you don't believe in those fairy tales. But I think Kaz might still believe in them and that could be something extremely dangerous."

"How can believing in heroes be dangerous?" Oliver asked the question Charles dreaded to hear and too scared to truly answer it. Oliver was still young and able to be influenced. With a bit of luck, it wouldn't become an obsession. He looked at his son.

"It just is." Was his vague reply, "You gotta trust me with this." When he looked at Oliver, he saw the hope just leave the boy. No more Kaz and no more comic books. Guilt wrenched in the older Pyne, hating to do this. He just wanted to protect his boy from getting hurt, that's all. He'd do everything. Even if it meant he had to take away his son's friends and interests.

"This isn't easy, Oliver," he said, "It isn't – not for you, not for me. But instead of focusing on the bad, let's look at the bright side. Who knows… if you're not friends with Kaz, you might be better at school, and you'll have more time to study harder. And maybe you become… I don't know… a doctor?"

"But I don't wanna do that without Kaz," shouted Oliver in an impulse.

"I know. Hey, listen, don't be mad at me. I'm just giving advice, nothing more. And when you're older, you'll think the same about this." Oliver looked at him, and Charles smiled at him. "You can go. I bet he's waiting for you." Oliver needed not to hear anything else and immediately stood up, walking to his bedroom in silence. His father watched him leave, to the irresponsible Gordon kid.

All he wanted was the best for his son, as well as to see him happy. Charles Pyne realized he couldn't wish for Oliver to have both.

* * *

><p><em>This morning:<em>

That morning, Oliver woke up feeling like he could take anything in the world, like he already accomplished something so far away they never thought possible. He found a way to possibly save the heroes, even if it was based on a lost rusty old dagger which may or may not have been moved or picked up by Optimo already.

Kaz did also feel great, but only because he slept better than the past few days, in the bedroom he shared with his youngest brother because there isn't a lot of space in their house. Finally he had gotten a good night's sleep, he felt so good he mighty actually pass a test today, if one of his teachers has planned on giving him a pop quiz. Oh, and he was happy for Oliver too.

They walked to school today, and when they arrived, Oliver could barely keep in his enthusiasm. He even went as far as talking to Kaz about it in public. People passed by and as usual, they weren't paying attention to the two comic book nerds who fit nowhere but with themselves. "…just think about all the possibilities! Maybe we can contact Optimo and the SSHH too, because nobody knows who they are and that way, make it almost impossible for them to be turned evil. He can take his dagger and use it, so we won't have to learn how it works. Then we only need to figure out how we can get them back. Trust me, this…"

"…is boring me even though you're talking about superheroes!" Kaz replied, "Seriously, shut up for one moment. Well figure it out after school, 'kay?" Oliver nodded and then Oliver frowned. This made Kaz wonder what Oliver was seeing behind him. His question was quickly answered, because when he also turned around, Oliver addressed their sort of friend.

_"Alan?" Oliver asked, and the kid looked at the two Normo doctors, "What are you doing here?" Alan shrugged._

_"Since I'm half Normo, I figured I'd go to school to embrace my Normo roots. I bet I'll be the most popular kid here, if I can keep my temper someone in check." Kaz laughed at that last one. He always had seen Alan as a little obnoxious, irritating and hot-headed. _No way he's gonna keep calm, _he thought._

_"You'll never be able to keep you temper in check!" He grinned, and Alan reacted with a loud yell – as usual._

_"I said _someone in check_!" he shouted, and immediately realized his mistake, trying to calm down again. When this happened fairly quickly, he continued talking. I also spend the weekend watching high school movies for research, so I've got this whole thing figured out. So at what time do students break into song and dance for no apparent reason?"_

_Now Oliver was the one laughing. Only, he didn't laugh out loud, only in his head. He assumed Alan watched all High School Musical movies and some others in which they also conveniently sang. He'd hate to burst Alan's bubble, but some had to do it. "Alan, that doesn't happen in real high schools."_

_Oliver was proved wrong. In the background, at the stairs, Gus and four others started to dance when some music from an unidentified source began to play. Also, Gus _sang_. And it didn't sound as bad as they thought it would be, but it still came unexpected. Oliver and Kaz looked surprised, but then again it was Gus who did it, so this was actually pretty much a normal day at Logan High._

_Alan rolled his eyes. "And you guys wonder why you're not popular. Hey, wait up for me!" He then yelled, poorly imitating the dance moves of the five students, following them. Oliver and Kaz shrugged, and then they saw a big surprise walking through the door of their school: Skylar Storm!_

"Connie!" Oliver said – it had almost become an automatism to call her that at school, because you couldn't be careful enough. He once almost made the fault to call her Skylar while Gus and Jordan were standing close. They know as much about comics as Kaz and Oliver – maybe not as much, but still – and they would recognize Connie as Skylar if someone accidentally called her that. "You're back!" she smiled.

"Yeah. As I said before, it's just to tie up loose ends." She looked around, "I'm gonna miss this place." Oliver came closer.

"I'm sure you're gonna be just fine." He assured her, but two other people had heard him say that to Connie. No second later, Gus and Jordan joined the group of friends and were looking at Connie.

"What's going on?" Gus asked, and Oliver frowned.

"I thought you were over there with the dancers and Alan?" Gus shrugged.

"I came back. So, what's going on with Connie?"

"I will move back home the next week, so this is my last week of school," she explained, and Gus nodded. He understood Connie had to leave, but he didn't understand why they were leaving so suddenly. She should've at least told them she was moving away. But Jordan reacted completely different than the weird guy.

"What? No, please don't go!" she begged, "Don't leave me here between these three idiots!" They didn't feel insulted – they knew Jordan thought of them as idiots, even as friends, and accepted it just because they accepted Jordan didn't like anyone. Connie shrugged.

"I'm sorry, Jordan, but this has to happen. I wish I could stay longer though." Jordan nodded, and Connie hugged her. She had to let go, though, because that girl did not liked being hugged, not even from her sister or parents, and especially if it was Gus or someone like him. Jordan now left for class, but Gus stayed.

"Anyway, I have some great news. Since there was no owner, I asked my dad if I could buy it again. He said yes, but it has to stay a comic book store. And I have to make the rules. But still, I'm the owner now!"

"Don't you need to be there to work, then?" Kaz wondered and Gus shook his head.

"As a good boss, I hired a guy who does that for me." Oliver nodded – it was smart to hire a guy, even if the shop didn't have too much customers and even if the people working there were paid with the money the boss had gotten from his father. They couldn't complain, though; at least the Domain was in the hands of someone who would take good care of it.

Gus, Connie, Oliver and Kaz headed for class. None of them noticed Alan looking around, not knowing where he should go next. Apparently, those movies didn't learn him how to enroll and how to get to his classes.


	7. Advice and disappointment

**Hey guys, I managed to write this one chapter before my exams begin Thursday for you guys. Got nothing else to say, except the response to the review and then the chapter itself:**

_Guest:_ _Is this soon enough? Also, there will probably no more updates until the 17th. And thanks for the review!_

**Enjoy!**

**-Writer207**

* * *

><p>During lunch break, Oliver and Kaz met in the cafeteria. It wouldn't take long before Gus, Jordan and Skylar – and possibly Alan – would arrive, so now was the only time they could discuss the Dagger of Truth and the sudden evilness of the heroes treated at Mighty Med.<p>

"So, where can we find that box with lost and found?" Kaz began, and Oliver shrugged.

"I dunno. But it must be somewhere in the Mighty Med."

"I hoped it would be at the Domain," Kaz admitted, "at least that place is smaller than the Mighty Med. I never knew a hospital for heroes could be that big." Kaz made a point – the Mighty Med was enormous, and according to Horace they've only seen half of the places there, not to mention the apartment department for the employees (and Alan) who also lived there.

"But luckily it is at the Mighty Med and not the Domain. Who knows what Wallace and Clyde could've done with that stuff?" Kaz nodded, and Oliver continued while Kaz took a bite out of his sandwich, "And I've been thinking about asking Skylar, Philip, Solar Flare and others if they've seen it." Kaz almost choked on his sandwich when Oliver said this.

"Are you insane?" He exclaimed, continuing on a hushed tone, "You said yourself we couldn't trust anyone! That includes Philip and Solar Flare and yes, Skylar too!" Oliver looked disappointed.

"But Skylar's a hero."

"So is NeoCortex," Kaz argued, "and look at him now! Dude, even Tecton was evil all those time and we didn't know it! How do we know Skylar isn't evil right now?"

"She'd never lie to us!" Oliver said, and he looked around. They had been continuing their conversation way too loud, and he needed to know if someone had heard them talking. He only saw the serenity of the cafeteria and Skylar sitting with Alan, Gus and Jordan four tables behind them. Part of Oliver wanted to invite them over, but he decided not to. It looked like they were having a good time – even Jordan! – and they were laughing. Oliver smiled when she saw Skylar was happily chatting with the three others. How could someone like her be evil?

"Earth to Oliver!" Kaz said, and Oliver was forced to continue the conversation with Kaz. "Dude, I was talking to you, didn't you hear any of it?" Oliver sighed.

"Yesterday, you didn't listen too," Oliver said, "And I think you're still jealous I'm spending more time with Skylar than with you." Kaz shook his head.

"Am not! Don't be so unreasonable, Oliver, I'm not jealous anymore! I'm just saying we should be careful with everything we say and do. Maybe we can even use the few Calderan words and use them so nobody can understand what we're talking about." he picked some candy out of his bag. "Want some diarrhea?" Oliver shook his head.

"We're not going to do that." Even before Kaz had come up with this ridiculous plan, he should take notice Kaz was right about one thing: they had to be careful about everything. Everyone could be watching, everyone could be listening and nobody could be trusted. Even Alan, Gus and Jordan.

Even Skylar Storm, their best superhero friend.

When they finished lunch, they went back to their lockers to pick up the books they needed for the classes they had after lunch. When the bell rang and the boys were ready to head to class, they saw their boss walking in the school building. Horace walked past them and wouldn't have even noticed them if they hadn't spoken to him first.

"Horace? What are you doing here?" Oliver asked, and Horace turned his head.

"Hey guys!" he greeted, "How are you doing. You're doing well, I think. Has any of you seen Alan?" Horace asked. Kaz nodded.

"Yes he's in the cafeteria." Horace was about to walk away, but Oliver stopped him again.

"Wait! Do you, by any chance, know where the lost and found box is at the Mighty Med?" Horace stopped and thought about it for a second before answering the question of one of his Normo doctors truthfully.

"Yes I did. I've seen it a few weeks ago. Too bad I lost it." He just saw the disappointment on Oliver's face, "But don't worry, it's somewhere around the hospital." And Horace walked away, not really caring about those Normos anymore. Kaz shrugged this info off, but Oliver was worrying.

"This is bad. We'll lose time trying to find it!" He said, but Kaz stopped him.

"Oh, relax!" he tried to reassure his friend, "You heard Horace. It's somewhere around the hospital and this time we know what it looks like so we can find it. Don't worry, we'll find it." This calmed him down, but it still felt like Kaz's words were useless. All negative thoughts dominated his mind, but despite this he still could hope to find the Dagger, to hand it over to Optimo and aid him in the battle against the Annihilator.

For even if they wanted to mope, they gotta cheer up and never give up hope.

* * *

><p>Alan, for once, was feeling very happy.<p>

Why is that, you ask? Because he finally has made some friends.

No, I'm not kidding, I'm serious. Alan has made some friends. Yes, they're Normos and yes, they may not be normal, but he wasn't very normal too. And if those two didn't like him anymore, he still had Skylar to hang out with.

These two Normos were called Gus and Jordan. Gus was this weird kid who just seemed to tag along and Jordan was pretty scary for a girl. Yet, he felt comfortable with those two (and Skylar) around him during lunch. Skylar could make sure he didn't burst into singing and dancing because he saw that in the High School Musical movies and could tell him the customs at school. Gus and Jordan also helped him around the building, like showing the places where he shouldn't go, where to go in dire situations and where the toilets were. You never knew when you needed them to do your business or to hide from that bully who would rather pick a new target.

Soon Alan had nicknamed the four of them the unusual gang – and he wasn't aware of the fact nobody would call them that and only he would know what it meant. Yet, the name still fitted this small group. Jordan was rather aggressive (sometimes). Connie was superhero Skylar Storm. Alan had telekinesis. And Gus was … he was just unusual, or weird, or odd, or any other way to describe he was the weirdest kid Alan's ever met, despite growing up in the hero business.

He had no idea this would change when a man unknown to most students came walking in the cafeteria. "Excuse me," he said loudly so the entire cafeteria could hear it, "Has anybody seen Alan Diaz? Little boy, kind of obnoxious, has a temper, kind of obnoxious?" Alan cursed under his breath, and Skylar looked shocked to see Horace at school again. Without saying anything else, Alan and Skylar got up and followed Horace outside, and so did Gus and Jordan. Those two Normos were just curious, that's all.

"What were you thinking?" they heard Connie's father say to Alan, "You know you shouldn't come here. And…" That's when Horace noticed the two Normos, recognizing the boy as the one Normo who was infected with the Super Virus.

"Sky- Connie," he said, remembering he's supposed to be the father of Connie Valentine at school, "Who are they?" Skylar quickly joined the two Normos.

"They're my friends. This is Jordan and this is Gus." This didn't exactly help, but now Horace did know their names. Also, Jordan and Gus were suspicious about this man, who seemed to know Alan when Connie had pretended not to know the new boy at school. To add things to this long list of suspicions, Alan started to talk to Connie's dad.

"Uncle Horace, why can't I go to this school?" Before Horace could answer, he was interrupted by Jordan.

"Uncle Horace? You're his nephew, he's your uncle, she's your cousin, he's her father, Connie!" She eventually shouted after summing up these family bonds, "You said you didn't know Alan. Why did you lie to us?" Connie looked nervous, but her argument was clear.

"I only learned a few days ago I had a cousin on my dad's side. I've never really seen him before," she eyed Alan, hoping he'd get the hint and would play along, "and I didn't know this Alan was my cousin. There are a lot of people named Alan." The so-called half-Normo did not catch the hint, but he also didn't know Horace once played Skylar's dad, which now played out in their advantage.

"I didn't know she's you daughter! Would you mind explaining?" Horace nodded.

"Off course, but since this is a family matter… Connie's friends, will you please leave this place? I want a private conversation with my nephew." Jordan shook her head while Gus nodded his. Eventually, they were convinced to leave. Jordan disappeared with a huff, while Gus waved at Mr. Valentine and yelled a happy 'see you later, Mr. Valentine!'. Finally Alan, Horace and Skylar were alone. Finally they didn't have to mind their language anymore.

"What were you thinking?" Horace continued his rant, "You're not prepared for this world! Come, I'll take you back to the Mighty Med. It's the only place where you're safe." He had grabbed Alan's arm, but the boy managed to free himself.

"No!" he yelled, "I'm sick of that hospital! And I prepared myself by watching very educational high school movies! I know what to expect here, and I'm fitting in. don't you see? I want this! I want to go to school! I want to be educated properly! But you never wonder what I feel about it, huh?" he was very close to shouting, "You never cared at all! You're the one making decisions without even asking me if I like it or not! I hate you!" Alan walked away, to the classroom he had been the previous period, leaving an astonished Horace all alone in the hallway of Logan High. Skylar was gone, too. She probably left when Alan was yelling Horace didn't care about Alan at all.

Horace had thought he was doing well by pushing Alan to make his own decisions by using the way of his ancestors. Too bad these were modern times and Alan, as moody as ever, was now going through a rough period of life called 'puberty'. And he meant the words he spoke.

Skylar had camouflaged herself and now was carefully studying Horace's facial expression after Alan had left for the classroom he had been in the previous period. Eventually, Horace left the hallway of Logan High and Skylar made herself visible again. After looking if someone was watching her, she opened a space portal which would lead her to the Annihilator.

Her master would be pleased to hear the dispute between Alan Diaz and Uncle Horace could be used in their advantage.


	8. More Trouble

**And I'm back! Here's the next chapter, and as the title already says, brings more trouble for the two Normos. I'm done with exams, now I hope I passed them... This isn't the place to complain about school, so I'm just gonna reply to the reviews and I'll let you guys read the newest chapter, 'kay?**

_BTRlover1122:_ _Thanks for the review, and good luck with your finals! And I can't help it if Skylar spies; it's the Annihilator who asked her to keep an eye on the Normos and everyone they talk with._

_LBF: Me too, but I hope she'll become good again. And thanks for the review!_

**Enjoy!**

**-Writer207**

* * *

><p>That day, the four walked back to the Mighty Med together. All were silent; nobody dared to speak up during their walk to the hospital. Alan was unspeakably mad at Horace for not wanting his nephew to be educated at a Normo school, even if it would improve his chances of getting a proper job. Alan wanted to lead a life of his own, instead of listening to his uncle all the time and his uncle controlling his every move. Skylar stayed calm because she had a plan to follow. And this plan, if executed well, will give the Annihilator a big advantage, both on the evil and the good side. Kaz and Oliver didn't say anything, fearing the two others could say anything about to ears they couldn't trust. Oliver really wanted to tell Skylar of their plans, but held himself back and bit his tongue to make sure not to say anything about it. Nobody but Kaz and he knew of their plan.<p>

In short, they were all thinking of their own plan.

When they had arrived in the hospital, they all went their separate ways. Skylar immediately left for the rec room, Alan walked off to his room and Kaz and Oliver stayed in the lobby for a while, picking up their clipboards saying what to do today. As they were looking at it, they talked. "We can search it while walking to our patients," Oliver suggested, "I have to be at least in four different locations in three different zones of this hospital. What about you?"

"Oh, I'm staying in the lobby all day." He said, and Oliver nodded.

"Alright. You look for it in the lobby twice on each location and I'll look for it in the corridors and rooms close to my patients."

"Sounds like a plan!" Kaz confirmed, and Oliver left for his first patient of the day while Kaz stayed in the lobby. Wherever Oliver looked in the past hours, he could not find the lost and found box, nor could he find the Dagger of Truth. Doubt began to rise. What if Optimo had returned to take his dagger back? There was no way they could contact him – until now, they haven't found anything to contact him. He decided to just get to work and hope to find it somewhere he forgot to look. But he never forgot to look somewhere.

Kaz had some jobs, but didn't have to do much. That way, he could look around for the Dagger of Truth and the Lost and Found box which they had found a few months ago and which they hadn't seen since. In between looking around for the box he spoke to Skylar, saw Alan walk out with a suitcase, helped a nurse with Surge and played limbo with some of the staff members. But apart from that, nothing important really happened and soon the boy was bored, as always. Luckily, Skylar passed him again so he didn't have to be bored again.

"Key, Kaz!" she greeted him, and he said 'hi' back to her. "How's it going?" Kaz nodded.

"I'm doing great, thanks." He answered, "You know, this is the second time you asked me today. Okay, what is it you wanna talk about?" Skylar shrugged, a smile on her face.

"Oh, I just wanted to know how your brother is doing."

"You have to be more specific," Kaz said, and Skylar nodded.

"I mean the brother who recently got out of jail. It was yesterday, wasn't it? So, how's he doing?" Kaz shrugged – he didn't exactly know how his brother was doing, but if Skylar was interested in his family for a change, he was more than willing to make up a lie which would probably be true to his older brother's feelings.

"Oh, he's…" he was interrupted by a sound. When Kaz and Skylar looked to find the source, they saw Citadel had fallen out of his wheelchair. Kaz sighed and turned back to Skylar. "Give me one moment." He walked over to Citadel and with another nurse, he helped the wounded superhero back into the wheelchair. Since this man was quite heavy, it took them some time before Citadel was back into his wheelchair. Kaz walked back to Skylar. "As I was saying, I think he's fine. He…"

"That's great!" Skylar interrupted him, "I thought he'd be broken because he now has to pick up his old life again and is haunted by this experience like forever, but I'm glad he's fine. Thanks for sharing this information with me, Kaz." Kaz smiled.

"No problem," he said, but Skylar already walked away. He didn't see why she would do that, but he didn't care why she would do that either. He placed himself on one of the gurneys and closed his eyes.

Not much later, Oliver walked back into the lobby. He had done everything he needed to do and in the meantime, he did not find the Dagger. He now hoped Kaz found it, but the chance was very small. He also saw his best friend lying on a gurney. Assuming the worst, he ran to his friend. "Kaz! What happened?"

"I'm tired!" was his lazy response, and Oliver sighed, "Did you find it?" Oliver already walked to the desks, because he didn't have time for Kaz' laziness right now. This is hopeless, he thought. I haven't found the dagger and Kaz didn't either… this is going to be harder than I thought. He stood behind one of the desks, in front of Kaz' backpack. Curiously, he took a glance. All that time, he didn't know what his best friend kept in his bag, but now he was going to find out.

He saw the usual: a few comic books, the books he took with him only because they were needed in school, some unidentified metal object and a few action figures, one of which was Tecton. Then, his eyes fell upon that unidentified metal object again, drawing Oliver's attention again. Wondering what it was, he pulled it out and surprisingly, he found himself staring at a rusty old dagger they've been looking for this afternoon. He could hardly believe his eyes: the Dagger of Truth had always been in Kaz' backpack! _Why would he hide this,_ he wondered. _Why doesn't he tell me he found it?_ It didn't take long before he connected the dots.

"Hey, you got it!" Kaz said when he finally had enough of lying around and had walked closer to Oliver and the Dagger in his hands. Oliver kept staring at the old metal object. "Where'd you find it?" Oliver did not do anything. He breathed, yes, he blinked also, but he didn't do anything but staring at the Dagger with those eyes widened, which was odd, to say the least.

"In your backpack," came the answer. Kaz frowned.

"My backpack?" No, he didn't believe it even after saying out loud, "Oliver, now's not the time for joking around. Now, where did you find it?" Oliver shook it.

"I can't believe you're playing dumb." Kaz' eyes widened.

"I'm not playing dumb! I don't know how it got there!" Kaz defended himself, "Now, let's be glad we have it, okay? We'll only have to contact Optimo and we can get started!" Kaz wanted to walk away, but he wasn't too happy when he noticed Oliver wasn't following him for the first time in a long time. He walked back and put his hands at his hips. "Well, are you coming or not?"

"How did this get into your backpack?" Oliver asked again, calmly, looking at Kaz as if he was gonna do something terrible. Kaz sighed.

"I wish I knew! I've had my eyes on my backpack at all times; I never gave anyone a chance to put this thing in there. Besides, I have eye witnesses who can tell you I haven't left the lobby today." He tried to explain this, but Oliver just wouldn't listen. You'd think he'd trust his best friend, who sometimes badly screwed up things, but in these times of distrust it was hard to tell an ally from an enemy.

"So you've found this before today and kept this all the time in your backpack?" Kaz shook his head.

"No, that's not it. Someone working for the Annihilator must've put it in there."

"I haven't spoken about the Annihilator yet," Oliver said, but Kaz was in a zone, so he just continued talking.

"I know, but now I'm starting about it. Maybe the Annihilator gave one of the heroes super hearing and he heard us talking and to frame me, he put this dagger in my backpack. Also, this also isn't the time to blame me as revenge because I blamed you yesterday for being the mole." He added the last part, thinking about the events of yesterday. They hadn't found anything yet to turn Blaylock into his old self again, or else he could've told them what to do and who the mole is.

"I'm not doing this because of yesterday," Oliver said, "Why don't you just admit you had this all along and we can continue."

"Continue, what?" Skylar said as she walked into the lobby. Kaz saw his chance and walked over to Skylar again.

"That's none of your business, but please would you tell Oliver I would never lie to him? Because he doesn't believe me and I'm sure he'll believe it when you say it." Skylar frowned and her attention was drawn to the rusty old dagger in Oliver's hand.

"What are you talking about? Is that Optimo's Dagger of Truth?" Oliver soon placed the dagger behind his back, smiling at the girl he loved.

"It doesn't matter. I found this object we were looking for in Kaz' backpack and it seems like he's been holding it back from me. Is that normal?" Skylar frowned.

"If it had some metal with it, then it sure was in his backpack. I saw it when he helped a patient but I didn't say anything because it looked like he was hiding it from sight. I didn't dare to say anything about it until now." Oliver looked at Kaz with disbelief, who at his turn stared at Skylar in disbelief.

"What the heck?" Kaz exclaimed, "This is the first time I see it since we met the captain. Oliver, you have to believe me." He realized this was the last time he would be begging for Oliver's mercy. This was the last chance he got to make his best friend believe he really didn't know it was in his backpack. But as he saw the look in his friend's eyes, he knew this couldn't be mended. _Well, at least this can't get any worse._

"You're working with the Annihilator." Oliver said, and Kaz sighed. _Alright, scrap that. This can get worse._

"I am not working for that guy." He wanted to add more details, but that would probably be taken as a sign he did do the things he described. "Listen, please, I really have no idea how that came into my backpack."

"Stop lying!" Oliver shouted, and now Kaz was getting angry.

"I'm not lying!"

"Then how did this get in you…"

"Like I said, I don't know!"

"Liar!"

"Traitor!"

Both walked away, Oliver with the dagger in his hands and Kaz after grabbing his backpack. Kaz had no idea why he shouted 'traitor', but it just sounded right after 'liar'. Skylar tried to stop him from going, but he ignored her. She was the reason he was going home now, the reason Oliver thought he was working for the Annihilator, and the reason why Oliver and Kaz weren't friends anymore.

Then realization hit him. This fight ruined their friendship. That meant he needed someone else to become his best friend.

He grabbed his phone, and typed in a random number. When he heard the familiar voice, he started to talk. He just needed to tell someone. It didn't matter who it was; he probably won't reveal any big secrets, but he still was going to be careful.

"Hey, Jordan! It's me."


	9. At Titanio's

**Welcome, guys, to the next chapter of the Wave. Night has now fallen,_ [*sings* so ends this day...] _and we'll focus on two young men who are in big trouble because this Wave. Anyway, let's just continue with this chapter and I won't be bothering you anymore, except to answer to the review, off course. **

_BTRlover1122:_ _Thanks for the review, and yeah he really is in trouble, but he'll try to prove his innocence to make sure he gets his friend back._

**Enjoy!**

**-Writer207**

* * *

><p>It was late at night. The city was asleep, but the lights were still on and there were people actually crazy enough to be awake at this hour. People passed by, cars drove down the ways and everything was right in its place, all holding a small part of the harmony that was Philadelphia at night time.<p>

Only one person could not enjoy Philadelphia at night, and that one person was Alan Diaz. He has never been out of the hospital during the night and immediately decided he did not like this at all. It was dark, it was cold and he was all alone. He was sitting in an alley (close to the hospital) on his suitcase. This had been his decision; to take matters into his own hands. He was sure nobody even looked up when he passed the lobby with this suitcase. He was very certain Kaz saw this, but he – just like the others – probably did not pay attention to that one small detail and were focusing on their works instead of the nephew of their chief.

_Why did I do this again?_ He thought miserably. There was no going back, he knew that. That way, he'd give Horace the message he could do anything he wanted with Alan, and the young boy was trying to make a point here. He wouldn't budge for Horace's will. Never!

He eventually stood up, lifted the suitcase with his hands (he was sparing his powers for another time) and he started to walk again. The further he was away from the hospital, and from Horace, the easier it would be for him to let it go. Nobody probably will miss him anyway.

He stopped after a few seconds of walking, because someone was walking towards him. And that someone appeared to be someone he knew. He dropped his suitcase in surprise.

"Skylar?" he asked, "what are you doing here?" Skylar just kept walking closer until she stood at ten feet from the boy. She looked amazing, but something was off about her. She seemed too confident; she wore a weird smile on her face and crossed her arms. She shrugged. Also, the pink highlights had a white shine to it now.

"Just taking a walk. What I want to know is what you are doing here." Alan gulped, though not audible. She walked a little closer, into the light and now Alan clearly saw a white streak in her hair instead of a pink one. That didn't look right, wasn't usual at all, and Alan backed away.

"Just like you, I'm taking a walk. But I'll go now. Bye!" He turned around and about to run away, but Skylar Storm used her super speed to stand in front of the frightened boy. She smiled at him – an evil smile.

"You aren't going anywhere," she said, and Alan had that itch again; that itch he had whenever he uncontrollably turned himself in an animal. Before this could happen, however, Skylar's finger tips lighted up and she placed them on Alan's forehead. The boy had no chance when the tips touched his head – he just fell down unconsciously, and Skylar Storm smiled. This was even easier than she had expected.

* * *

><p>That night, Henry Tidwell couldn't get to sleep.<p>

First, there was the Annihilator and Catastrophe showing up at the Mighty Med. They could be beaten before the League of Heroes showed up, luckily, but it didn't feel right. Catastrophe was before his disappearance the greatest of the villains and might have lost powers over the years. And the Annihilator… nobody but Skylar Storm really knew what was going on in that twisted mind of his. Maybe it was his plan to get locked up in the prison. Or maybe he had done something to the hospital in the short time the villain was on the loose in there.

Then, there was Tecton coming back so suddenly. He wasn't there when it happened, but he did watch the security tapes from the moment he entered the hospital – too bad he couldn't access the security cameras from the Mighty Max. He seemed convincing enough for Horace, but Henry did have his suspicions. It was just this feeling he couldn't shake off.

Last but not least, the loss of a lot of heroes. He noticed a lot of heroes are suddenly disappearing, only to appear again to attack other heroes. It began with the reveal of Tecton's treason. From then, more of these 'moles' started popping up, even going as far as changing sides while in the hospital. NeoCortex, always reasonable and good-hearted, and Blue Tornado, ever ready to fight any evil, were examples. Blue Tornado openly switched sides as he escaped from the Mighty Med and NeoCortex also fought his way out after being treated by doctors who were 100% sure he was good and weak because of Spark Plug and Silver Shield.

He wondered about the short time all of this was happening in. One week, a few days, and all of this was a reality. In a few days, you didn't know who to trust anymore. In one week, he spent almost all of his night without sleep, trying to figure out this big riddle that just did not want to be solved.

He rolled over in his sleep again and groaned. Across the hall some heroes were still awake. He heard it – across the hall was a spare room where he sometimes read books – only when he was very bored – and the others came to chat in private with each other. Those others were the members of the League of Heroes which had decided to move in with him. Being the richest guy on the group and also team leader, he had decided that whoever wished to move in Tidwell Manor could do so. There were ten others who lived here apart from him, and one of those others was Tecton.

He didn't like living with him right at this moment. But he couldn't kick the hero out of the house because of some suspicions, either. But he did keep any eye on the hero. The others welcomed him home. Some were wary like their leader, and most of them were glad Tecton was back, mostly because they seriously needed the muscle on their team.

Across the hallway, the sounds got worse. Henry could clearly hear them through the paper-thin walls of his room (you can never know if someone wants to kidnap this Normo billionaire) and he sat up, looking op at his alarm clock. It was nearly 2 o'clock in the morning, and he groaned again. He had no idea what his friends were doing in there, but he was going to make an end to it. He was sure they would respect his wish to sleep.

In his bathrobe he entered the corridor. Directly across this corridor, about five meters to his right, was this room where he heard the heroes. But as he got closer, he noticed something was breaking. When he listened at the door, he heard a muffed scream and someone beating someone else.

There weren't talking in there. They were fighting.

Soon, Henry ran to the other side of the corridor, where he secretly placed his Titanio-suit. Others thought he stored it in the basement, but Henry was smarter than that. When he arrived there and he placed his hand on a certain spot in the wall, the doors slid open and revealed his blue Titanio-suit. The suit slid open en Henry stepped in it. The suit closed around the billionaire and Titanio stepped out of the hole in the wall, running back to the room.

He opened the door – there would be no collateral damage in his house! – ready to strike if necessary. Luckily, it wasn't necessary. He quickly took in the details in the room. Pretty much everything was trashed – and he had to pay a lot to fix this. He wouldn't be poor, but he just hated collateral damage. There were two heroes present in the room. One of them was Tecton, leaning over the other one, who was lying motionless on the ground. That other person was the newly recruited Surge, who had rejected any offer to join until a few weeks back.

Soon Titanio hurried to the hero on the ground, almost pushing Tecton out of the way. When he looked at Titanio's face, he saw nothing but worry. This took away part of his suspicions, but he still had some. He'd always be vigilant. He looked at Tecton.

"What happened to him?" He assumed Tecton had been there when it happened. Tecton shrugged.

"I don't know, I just came in here myself. Actually, just a few seconds before you came in." Titanio nodded – he didn't have any proof, so he just had to admit Tecton only arrived here a few seconds ago, probably because of his super speed when Surge tried to call him with his phone.

Surge did have his phone in his hand. The severely wounded hero wasn't wearing his gloves, also, which meant that if he used his power of electricity, it should've gone straight through his body instead of being protected by the gloves lying a few feet away. He was lucky to still be alive. And we're not even talking about the giant bruise on his head. He either knocked him head onto something very hard or someone's stone fist must have hit him there. Surge really was lucky to still be living.

"I'm gonna fly him to the hospital." Tecton said, but before he could do anything, Titanio said something else.

"No, I am gonna drive him to the hospital." Tecton frowned.

"I can be there faster."

"Yes, but who knows what the flight can do to him? We don't know if it'll damage him even more. No, it's much safer if I drive him there. Can you bring me a gurney?" Tecton frowned.

"What would you need a gurney for?"

"Do you expect me to pick him up in bridal style? No, I won't. Besides, it might be safer to do this. He's in a critical situation. We don't know what hit his head and how severe this injury may be for him. So, a gurney please. I do have an elevator, remember?" Tecton grumbled something and then left the room. If Tecton wasn't back in one minute, he'd be taking his time instead of hurrying. "Everything will be okay, Surge. You're gonna make it." Titanio tried to believe his own words, but it was very hard. He'd be okay, but what would be the consequences? Maybe this attack saved him from joining the Dark Side, as the problem is with many other heroes.

A loud gasp was heard and Titanio almost jumped up when it was Surge who had gasped. He was trembling from head to toe all of a sudden and the wounded hero tried to grasp Titanio's suit, but calmly Titanio held Surge down, telling him he shouldn't worry. And yet, he was staring with those big scared eyes at the leader of the Leagues of Heroes.

"Are you with the Annihilator?" He asked, voice filled with fear. Titanio frowned, but soon he wiped that off his face and gave him an assuring smile.

"No, I'm not." He wanted to ask what happened, but the wounded would probably not answer that question. Besides, Surge already had something else to say than what had happened just a few minutes ago.

"Bring me to the Med. Only you, no-one else." Titanio nodded and watched the young man slip into unconsciousness again. This got Titanio thinking. Why would Surge begin to talk about the Annihilator? Why was he so afraid when he saw the only Normo billionaire he dared to trust?

This attack wasn't a coincidence, Titanio concluded. Someone intentionally wanted to hurt Surge – this wasn't like those many times where villains tried to breach the security systems of the manor and break in. Only Wi-Fi had succeeded in ever getting in, but only because of his unfair technological advantage.

This was in infiltration mission.

Someone of his own had tried to – probably – kill this young hero, or to lure him to the Dark Side.


	10. Broken

**And here's the ninth chapter of The Wave and we go back to a normal day of school for the Normos. The previous chapter might seem a little pointless, but it was necessary for the plot, especially Alan's part. And ****now, I will be answering to the reviews and then you can continue reading, 'kay?**

_4everMagic: Well, here it is and thanks for reviewing!_

**Enjoy this holiday chapter! Merry Christmas and a happy New Year! **

**-Writer207**

* * *

><p>When the sun rose on this sunny Wednesday morning, nobody suspected the terrifying events of last night. Most students got up and went to school as if nothing special had happened yesterday, except that one girl who might have lost her boyfriend, or the set of Christian parents who were told by their son he loved another guy. But whatever pain these people felt, it was nothing compared to what Kaz and Oliver went through yesterday. Because of one small suspicion, their friendship might be ruined for a long time; until their argument was solved.<p>

This suspicion was clear to all who went to school with them, though they did not know about heroes existing. But they did see one of the Gordons hiding in the trash can; one of these people was Jordan. When she walked past the trash can, she noticed Kaz had sunk even deeper than usual by climbing in the trash can out of free will. She looked one more time to be sure it indeed was Kaz, but she wasn't wrong in the first place. Kaz Gordon indeed was in the trash can, looking at Oliver's locker and to Skylar who was standing next to Oliver's locker. He didn't even notice Jordan was standing next to him.

She loudly yelled his name and the trash can almost fell because of the sudden noise in his ear. When he looked up, he saw a confused and amused Jordan. "What are you doing in there?" she wanted to know, not hiding her amusement. Kaz shrugged, though Jordan did not see it, and he truthfully answered her question.

"I'm hiding from Oliver, of course." Jordan frowned.

"Why would you hide from him?" she wanted to know, "You've been best friends since you were three." Kaz turned his head to Jordan for the second time before looking back at Oliver's locker.

"Well, not today," was his vague reply, "And you remember what I told you yesterday, don't you? If Oliver is really trying to frame me, I want to stay as far away from him as possible. There might be a small chance I won't come back if he finds me. Plus, he's gonna be super mad when if he finds out I was keeping an eye on him ever since he walked into this building." Jordan looked at Oliver's locker, the thing Kaz has been staring at since he arrived in the school. She only saw Skylar standing there, talking to someone, but there wasn't anyone there to talk with.

"I only see Connie and no Oliver. Where is he?"

"He's in his locker. Where else could he be?" He said it with a matter-of-factly tone, as if it was completely normal Oliver was hiding in his small locker, when he normally is afraid of small spaces. Jordan sighed.

"Come on!" she began, "Why don't you just go to talk things out with him? I am sure you'll come to a solution you're both happy with and as much as I like to see you sitting in garbage out of free will, you need to fix this. You can't stay mad about just a guess." Kaz huffed.

"No, I can't because you can't understand the situation I'm in." That's all he wanted to say about it, and Jordan rolled her eyes, irritated. Boys; can't live with them, can't understand them. She stayed anyway, solely because she liked seeing him sit in garbage.

At the other side of the hallway, Skylar was standing next to Oliver. It might look like she was talking to Oliver's locker as if he was in there, but in fact he had found a scientific invisibility cloak (for stealth mission for the guards) and borrowed it for today, so he wouldn't have to be bothered by Kaz. There's no way he'd go in that locker. Skylar was asked to stay close to him as long as Kaz was around and even though Oliver didn't know where Kaz was, he was sure the boy would show up eventually. Skylar sighed.

"Oliver, why don't you take off that stupid cloak? It's really weird to be talking to someone who supposedly isn't there."

"No, I'm not taking this off," she heard Oliver say, who was standing almost too close to him, "If we're right and Kaz is really working for the Annihilator, I'd better stay hidden from him so he won't be able to annihilate me. Besides, can you see him? Because I can't – I might be invisible, but I can't see a thing." He asked, still slightly scared of his best friend, trying to figure out where Kaz could have gone wrong after all the times Oliver kept Kaz of the road leading to jail. Maybe it was in his blood, looking at the older brothers in jail because they joined the dark side, though not on a scale as big as he and Kaz dared to go.

"He's in the trash can," she said, "hiding from you." Skylar hoped he'd get Kaz was afraid, too, but deeper in her mind she was laughing of joy, though that joy wouldn't be noticeable.

"He's not hiding from me," Oliver said, and apparently he'd taken a few steps away from her. "He's waiting for the moment I take this off so he can destroy me. He won't destroy you now because of your powers." Skylar sighed and she stepped closer to Oliver, trying to corner him, trying to stand face to face with him. This was going way too far, even if it is just a stupid toy dagger.

"Okay, that's it!" she pulled the cloak off of Oliver, and they both looked around, but nobody has seen them. Skylar placed the cloak in her locker and then grabbed Oliver by his wrist, pulling him to the trash can with Kaz in it and Jordan. When she stood there, Jordan gladly helped Kaz out of the trash can by pushing it until it fell. Skylar grabbed him by his wrist, with still pieces of garbage present on his outfit. She held their wrists tight and when she warned them not to run, she let them go and indeed neither tried to run away from the other.

"Guys, this is ridiculous," Skylar said to both, "You can't fight because of what happened yesterday and the day before."

"Connie's right," Jordan agreed with Skylar, "stop acting like five year olds!" Kaz crossed his arms.

"But he started it," Oliver said with a whiny tone, and Kaz sighed.

"Seriously? You are blaming me_ again_? You know, I was hoping you'd come to senses last night." Neither of them used words which could imply heroes and a hospital for heroes exist because Jordan and even Gus were listening to their argument.

"I have to come to senses? Kaz, you're the one who needs to rethink this whole situation."

"Fight! Fight! Fight!" Gus joined the argument, but was soon pushed out of the way by Jordan.

"I do? You're the one randomly blaming me!" Kaz continued, and Oliver sighed.

"Not randomly; I've seen it, I have a witness and you have no alibi, so I'm telling the truth."

"Well, maybe you've heard the wrong truth. Or what if we're both telling the truth?"

"Kaz, that is very unlikely. What I'm trying to say is…"

"Cut it out!" Skylar interrupted them, and both fell silent. If Skylar needed to say something, they would listen, because they never knew if it would be useless or not, or maybe she would tell them she's help one of them with finding the mole and fighting him or her. But it was anything I just suggested. "My dad wants to meet you now."

She said it with such a serious tone the two boys did not resume their fight, but knew what to do. If Horace needed them, there must be an emergency at the Mighty Med and it also meant Horace wanted to see them both working together as a team. Skylar and Oliver had decided not to tell Horace, or he might fire them. Without saying anything else, the two Normo doctors left the school and took the shortest route to the hospital.

Gus and Jordan were still looking at them when they noticed Skylar still was here. They were looking at her, confused about how suddenly those boys stopped fighting to go to Connie's dad.

"What was that all about?" Gus wanted to know and Skylar shrugged.

"My father is a very important man and he's the one who offered them their jobs. He's probably asking for them now because he's too busy to say goodbye another time. He really liked those two. They will still work there; but my dad and I will move anyway."

* * *

><p>Silently, Kaz and Oliver walked into the lobby of the Mighty Med, where their boss had been waiting for them to arrive. Horace looked very concerned and seemed relieved when the Normos had finally arrived. During their walk to the hospital, the two had kept their respective distance. They walked close enough to catch the other talking about plans (which didn't happen) yet far enough to make sure they wouldn't be captured. You couldn't be careful enough in these dark times.<p>

"Guys! There you are!" Horace greeted them, "I lost Alan. I can't find him anywhere! Can you help me find him?"

"Ah, I give up." Was Kaz' immediate response, "he's probably at school anyway."

"No, he isn't, because we would've seen him." Oliver pointed out and Kaz shook his head, glaring at Oliver.

"Oh, as if you know when and where Alan is at this point," he sneered. If Horace hadn't interrupted them here, they would have continued fighting right on the spot and Horace would have noticed they were now not best friends anymore.

"Oh," Horace continued as if whatever he now had to say wasn't as important as Alan's disappearance, "and I need you guys to take a look at Surge. Nobody can explain what happened and since you know all about heroes, I thought you could figure it out." He told the boys in which room Surge was placed, and the two went there. They must be really desperate to ask the Normos about their precious knowledge to identify what could have happened to poor Surge. The two left for Surge immediately after they heard the news.

"What's wrong?" Oliver asked when he saw Kaz was frowning. It's not that he wanted to know why he was frowning, but he just was trying to figure out what he was worrying about – and maybe, just maybe he could catch a hint which may tell something about his relationship with the Annihilator.

"Nothing you already know," was Kaz' vague answer and Oliver stopped him.

"No, seriously, what's bothering you?" Kaz huffed.

"If you want to know so badly, you are," he sneered, "You're bothering me. You think you're great, don't you, unmasking the mole? No, you're not! Without me, you're nothing. No brains without the brawn. And, again, I am not the mole, I have no idea how the Dagger got in my backpack and I do not work for the Annihilator." Oliver just shook his head, rethinking every single word his 'friend' had said.

"You do realize you just admitted you work for the Annihilator?" Kaz' eyes widened.

"Wha… I did not! I just said that you think you're great because you think you unmasked the mole, I'm not implying I work for that guy! I don't even know where he lives." Oliver stared at him, "Okay, I do know where he lives, but so do you! That doesn't prove anything."

"You know what?" Oliver said, with an obviously fake smile on his face, "We're through. It's over." And Oliver walked to Surge's room, leaving an astonished Kaz behind.

"Did you just break up with me?" He said, only now realizing his unfortunate choice of words. But yeah, after being together (as just friends) since they were three, it did feel like Oliver broke up with him (again, they're just friends).

Kaz ran behind Oliver to Surge's room because how much the two hated it, they still had the task to examine him together.


	11. Hate and fright

**Merry Christmas everybody! This is my present to you guys, chapter 10 of the Wave. ****How will Oliver and Kaz work together? What about Skylar, Horace and Alan? Well, if you read this chapter, you'll know how this day will end for both. Yet, I'm not forgetting the review who deserve a response:**

_BTRlover1122:_ _Thanks for your review! I hope you get better soon! And yes, they really need to stop acting like five year olds and Alan just ran away; you'll find out where he went. And Skylar still needs to pretend to be a good guy._

**Enjoy this holiday chapter!**

**-Writer207**

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><p>Surge looked awful.<p>

That immediately one thing both agreed with. Even though it didn't look all bad at first, they soon realized the hero was in big trouble. And as avid comic book fans, nobody needed to tell them Surge wasn't wearing his gloves, which normally meant he was in big danger and he'd rather be brought to the hospital rather than get captured by the bad guy. And a fast way to get hurt is to remove the gloves and use the powers, which then not only hurt the opponent, but the hero as well.

Both silently performed their tasks, nothing more and nothing less. They didn't talk about the possibilities: they weren't discussing what villain could be behind this, how to make this hero feel better and they definitely didn't think of sharing the comic book when it came out – the one who got there first, would be the one reading the comic book. Period.

They worked together just fine and everything was alright, because they weren't talking or looking at one another. They knew everything they needed to know and assumed a lot. They worked equally long and did everything they had to do.

Their problem showed up again when both knew what Surge's problems were. You see, they both wanted to use a certain object to see if he was all right on the inside, if any infections had gotten hold of him, and Kaz and Oliver both grasped it, only to figure out they took a hold of each other's hands instead of the device.

"What are you doing?" Oliver wanted to know as they quickly pulled back their hands. Kaz shrugged.

"I am trying to make him feel better." Kaz said, pointing at the fallen hero. He didn't look very well. Even as he was lying there, he was in pain. Hey, you'd be too when electricity shot through your body. And you're not electro-proof to a certain amount of it. It was hurting him so much. His head too, but the electricity was more unbearable than the head-ache. If I'd compare the two, the head-ache seemed a small bleeding wound that didn't hurt and the power surge through his body was like a broken arm or leg. Only the pain of both was amplified. Oliver smiled a fake smile at him.

"Kaz, I need it now." Kaz nodded.

"Yeah, well, so do I – I need it to help him." Oliver sighed – he didn't want to fight with Kaz, physically or verbally. And he was very certain Kaz did not want to fight as well. Somehow, Oliver started thinking about the Annihilator's methods of people working for him. He could do many, many things and some of those were contaminating the powers of a hero (or villain), blackmail or placing a small bomb in the victim's stomach. Yes, he has already done all of that, but there are more ways of making someone work for you. Wait a second…

"That's it!" Oliver shouted, and Kaz looked over his shoulder at his friend.

"What is it?" he asked and saw Oliver was looking at him in a worried way. That was at least an improvement – he didn't seem frightened or angry anymore, but just worried. That was a positive improvement. But why his friend was worried, he'd be hearing within a few seconds.

"Kaz… I think I know what's going on! You're being blackmailed by the Annihilator to work for you." Kaz frowned.

"He doesn't blackmail me." he said, but Oliver tried again.

"Okay. Then you're being controlled to do certain things or else you'll…" Oliver paused, "But off course you're gonna deny working for him because he's probably telling you to do that. But he can't see you, can he? Alright, blink if the Annihilator controls you or put a small bomb inside your body to blackmail you." Kaz shook his head and resumed what he was doing, and he didn't blink at Oliver. Oliver tried keeping him from his job to find out whether or not Kaz really did blink to indicate the blackmail.

"Oliver," Kaz groaned eventually, "Listen. I am not working for the Annihilator. He doesn't control me, he doesn't blackmail me and he hasn't put a bomb in me. The last time we've seen him, he was brought to Mighty Max. And I need _this_ to help Surge. Now, would you mind?" he added, silently telling him to stop keeping him away from this work. This is the only paid job he liked and he wasn't gonna give that up because Oliver was obsessed with thinking his best friend worked for the Annihilator.

"Yeah, it's just like you 'needed' the Dagger to help the evil heroes." Kaz turned back to Oliver, his eyes expressing his seriousness and he shook his head.

"Seriously? You're going there again? Dude, for the last time: I don't know how it got there!" Oliver was about to say something back, but he couldn't say the words he had wanted to say. He was interrupted immediately by Horace Diaz, who had walked into the room for a reason he soon was to explain. He looked in it and saw nobody but Kaz, Oliver and Surge. He shut the door and looked at the two Normos.

"What's going on in here? Were you fighting?" Kaz nodded, and so did Oliver. They could've said 'yes', but this was clearer. Plus, if they'd say something, Horace would only interrupt them. It was worth a try, anyway.

"Oliver thinks…" Kaz started, but soon was interrupted by his boss, the chief of staff. He looked at them very carefully before he made a conclusion and shared it with them.

"Boys, you're doctors, you don't fight each other! Take the rest of the evening off. Someone else can take care of Surge, too." Horace said, "By the way, what exactly has happened to him?" The two explained they still had no idea what happened, but they were sure he was trying to get here and defended himself.

Then, Kaz and Oliver left the hospital, blaming the other for what occurred while treating Surge.

* * *

><p>When Alan opened his eyes again, he did not recognize where he was. He was in a big room which smelled awful. The room had only one entrance, and that one was blocked by iron bars and a code. At the other side was a shelf or three, with nothing on there, but the name tags suggested someone had been collecting stuff from certain heroes. He was closer to the shelves than the exit, and he looked at the names, being very bored. He read a few. Captain Freedom and Alpha Dog were some of the few he could read. Yet, three of those names drew his attention.<p>

_Snow Storm._ She recently fought with the Incinerator and he heard Kaz and Oliver went to get the powers back or else she'd die. Last time, she was spotted attacking Solar Flare.

_Absolute Zero._ The guy had lost his powers in the same battle Snow Storm lost hers. He didn't lose as much as her, but still. Incognito almost died fighting this ice-cold hero.

_Skylar Storm._ She recently got her powers back as well, and she was acting a little strange lately, something the Normos failed to notice. And she too lost her powers to the Annihilator.

This wasn't just some random place he was kept – it was the Annihilator's lair he was sitting in. he started to panic, shrieked and called out for help. He desperately tried to escape, but the ropes were just too strong and the chair to stable. After what seemed hours, Alan gave up after trying doing everything he could. He had thought he could escape by turning into a fly or something, but he couldn't. He also failed to lift something with his telekinesis. It was a clear unspoken message: I took your powers. And to mock the boy the Annihilator had placed the tube containing his spooky white powers in front of him, out of his reach. If he had any tears left, he'd cry.

"I should've listened," Alan said out loud, voice hoarse of the screaming, "I should've listened to you, Uncle Horace! I should've never left the hospital! I should've not gone to that Normo school! Uncle Horace, if you hear me, I'm sorry for not listening to you!" yet, there was nobody to hear his plea, nobody to hear him beg for forgiveness to a man who probably hadn't even noticed he was gone.

_That's it,_ he thought, _I'm gonna die._ And that only is because Horace acted too careless whenever it came to Alan. Besides, the young so-called half-Normo knew Horace preferred Zachary above him. Nobody would know he was gone, left in the cruel hands of the Annihilator and his servants, should he have any.

Talking about servants, a space portal opened right in front of Alan, and he shrieked again, not being able to turn into anything.

"Hello, Alan," Skylar Storm said, having an evil look on her face, "Don't try to use your powers. The Annihilator has stolen them from you. There is no place you can go to." Alan rolled his eyes, though still visibly scared.

"I knew that already," he said, and it stayed silent for a while, "So you are the mole! Why are you working for him?" Skylar simply smiled, giving him no response whatsoever, walking closer to him, and Alan tried to back away as far as possible. "W-What does the Annihilator want with me?"

Skylar did bother to answer this question. "I told the Annihilator about the fight between you and Horace and we knew this was the perfect opportunity." Alan tried to stand up, but he just didn't have the muscle for it. Skylar Storm, however, just walked past him and focused on an item lying on the shelf.

"What are you gonna do to me?" he dared to say, and Skylar turned back to him. If Alan could get any paler, it would've happened to him already. "You're gonna kill me!" Skylar rolled her eyes.

"No, I'm not. You're far too useful to kill. Man, I never thought I'd say that to you." She came closer, holding that one device in her hands. First, Alan thought they were slowly gonna torture and then kill him. But now he got his answer and Skylar still was holding that device in her hands, he realized the girl was gonna do something way more dangerous to him than torture.

"Now, stay calm," she said, "You won't even feel it will happen." Skylar advanced to Alan as he shrieked like a little girl again and tried to talk her out of it.


	12. Four visits

**Happy new year everyone! To kick off the new year, here's the latest chapter of the Wave, with only heroes appearing in it and with twice the length of a normal chapter. ****When four times two heroes meet in the evening, what will these two do?**

**Enjoy this holiday chapter!**

**-Writer207**

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><p>As usual, the Crusher was working out at home. His wife was working in the office next to his personal training room. Whenever he couldn't train at the Mighty Med, he would train at home, even if his wife wasn't too happy about all the time he put in working out. Too bad he couldn't explain to her why he had to work out all the time, but she did like his muscles.<p>

He was now lifting weights, hoping to become stronger, faster, better. He needed to be stronger because the villains were very strong nowadays. He needed to be faster so he could outrun those who were willing to turn him evil like they did with his best buddy, the Blue Tornado. He needed to be better so nobody would even dare take him on whenever alone. Stronger, faster, better. So he wouldn't become evil. So he wouldn't have to drag his wife into this big mess.

He almost didn't hear his phone went over. He stopped lifting weights, putting it back in place. He took his phone and saw it was a number he didn't have in his phone. Yet, he did answer. Who knows, maybe the person at the other side had punched in the wrong number. "Hello?" The young man said.

"Are you the Crusher?" asked the voice on the other side. The hero was silent because of that sudden question, but as he trained to be better, he also practices his lying to sound convincing enough to have people stop bothering about that topic.

"Mister, heroes don't exist. They're comic book characters. Who are you anyway?" he eventually added. He needed to know who was calling him, so he could address this person properly. It stayed silent at the other side and the Crusher was about to hang up when the voice at the other side decided to reply.

"It's me, Brain Matter, and I want to ask some question. If you hang up on me, I'll just keep calling you," the voice at the other side, which really did belong to Brain Matter, said. The Crusher heard how serious Brain Matter sounded and decided to just tag along. He needed to take a break from the work out anyway.

"Are you or are you not working for the Annihilator?" The Crusher frowned. Brain Matter indeed was very straight when it came to these questions, and he could already guess what was following. The crusher answer truthfully he doesn't work for that 'guy who thinks it's easy to enslave heroes'. It stayed quiet for a while as Brain Matter probably noted down the answers.

"Have you been in contact with anything evil lately, excluding the fact you fight evil?" _No, I have not, good sir. _The Crusher sounded almost upset with the distrust the man was showing. Again there was silence before the last question was asked eventually.

"Do you or do you not want to trust a few people?" The Crusher stayed quiet, but then eagerly answered he did want someone to trust. He didn't even need to think about the answer. Everyone wants someone to trust. He trusted his wife, yes, but that was different. She's a Normo. She didn't understand nor did she read comic books.

"I believe you," Brain Matter eventually said, "and I think you'll believe me to when I say I am willing to include you in my team. This team solely consists of heroes I consider trustworthy and which I have tested the same way as I tested you. Nobody is the leader, everyone is equal to another. We meet up each night to share some theories, to try to unmask the mole and secret villains. If one of us is acting weird or is lying, he or she will be banned from the group and the memory about this group will be taken away."

"You have a memory manipulator?" the Crusher wanted to know, and Brain Matter laughed at the other side of the line.

"I just finished building one and tested it. So, what do you say?" the Crusher was still doubting. How could he trust Brain Matter? The man could be lying. He could be lying about all of it. This could be a trick of the Annihilator to lure him to the lair, to overpower him and turn him evil as they did with Blue Tornado. _I'm not gonna end up like George,_ he thought, the image of the Blue Tornado attacking him still clearly visible whenever he closed his eyes.

"How do I know you're not lying? And what do we do when you're the evil one?" Silence. Brain Matter was thinking about this question before he responded with an honest answer.

"Then one of you has to erase the memories by me. And I swear on my mother's grave that I do not lie to you about this, nor that I am evil." The Crusher nodded, because what Brain Matter swore, he was gonna do. "Have we got a deal?" If Brain Matter was standing next to the Crusher, they'd be shaking hands by now.

"Yes, we have. I'll contact you later," the Crusher said and he hung up. He and Brain Matter would have chatted for a long time if the Crusher hadn't noticed his wife, his dearest Amelia had walked in. she walked closer to him as he smiled at her.

"Who was it?" she asked, and the husband shrugged.

"Just someone from work. It's nothing you should worry about, honey."

* * *

><p>In the evening, in a calm neighborhood in downtown Philadelphia a woman was readying herself to go to the hospital. She came there every week, and on special occasions too, like the time she got beaten up by the Vanquisher. Alley Cat knew she had to pay part of the bills, since most doctors were paid with the money the comic books made and most equipment as well. She had a job which allowed her to pay those small bills and to go to work during the times she wasn't fighting crime as the Alley Cat.<p>

She normally stopped crime in the smaller neighborhoods of Philadelphia. Sometimes she'd go to the center of the city with a partner to stop a major villain and on a rare occasion she'd travel to New York with the League to stop a very big threat.

But right now, she liked to stay at home and show her face as less as possible. If she didn't show up much, there would be a reduced chance someone would attempt to turn her to the Dark Side and make her a villain for the Annihilator. The message about the mole and the petrification of Blaylock was much classified, and thus knew all heroes about it. Everyone was wary. Right now, she wished she had accepted the offer to join the SSHH when she had the chance.

She was about to leave in her Normo attire when the doorbell rang. Alley Cat looked up when she heard the familiar sound. To be honest, this was only the fifth time someone rang her doorbell since she moved into the house. The previous four times, someone was trying to look for evidence, which he never found. Alley Cat sighed and walked to the door. When she opened it, she knew who it was. In modern civilian clothes – he'd learned a lot about today – stood Captain Atomic and Alley Cat sighed.

"Captain, I'm very busy right now. Why don't you come back tomorrow?" she wanted to slam the door in his face and considered leaving for the Mighty Med through the backdoor, but the hero entered before she could do these things. She sighed. "Why today?" she wanted to know.

"Because of what happened to Surge, off course. I want to be sure it wasn't you." Alley Cat followed him as he entered her living room. Off course it hadn't been her; she'd been living here for three months and hasn't visited Tidwell Manor once since she moved out.

"I have to ask you to leave my house immediately?" she said, and the hero looked up, not really surprised by her reaction. This is what she said every time, with only slight variation. Each time, trouble had risen and the Captain had come to check upon her. Apparently he and other tended to think she had chosen to be evil. Okay, she may have robbed a shop once but that was before she was Alley Cat and it wasn't an excuse to come over at the slightest sign of evil growing.

"What do you have to hide?" Captain Atomic asked, and Alley Cat rolled her eyes.

"I have nothing to hide, sir, you're the one entering and looking for something you probably won't find." She looked at her watch, "And I'm already very late for my visit, so would you mind?" The Captain stopped looking under the couch and put it back in the right place.

"I'm sorry if I annoy you, but you know I care about each and every other fellow hero. I'm not only visiting you. I visited Incognito too. I couldn't hear or see him, but he did open the door." Alley Cat frowned.

"Is that supposed to make me feel at ease?" she asked and shook her head, "Captain, you are wasting your time. You could better focus on stopping the villains then to annoy me. And I'm super late for my check-up at the hospital. And If Diaz asks where I've been, you can explain it to him." He didn't doubt any of that, except for one thing.

"But I am stopping villains. I'm making sure you don't become one. Now, I know you don't like it, but I seriously will have to check the closets in your bedroom, so…" Alley Cat let out an irritated growl and she rolled her eyes, glaring at the man. Captain Atomic also didn't like having to check the closets, but he told himself he'd keep his fellow heroes safe, even if that meant they had to be saved from themselves. Even if they didn't like him visiting only to check up on them, they would probably thank him later.

"No way that you are going to my bedroom!" she almost yelled these words, and he heard so much anger he almost run. When Alley Cat's angry, you'd better stay out of her way.

"No bedroom then," he quickly said, and she gave him an innocent smile – at least, she attempted to smile at him. "You sounded very angry. Are you becoming evil?" That was it. Alley Cat grabbed him by his shirt and pulled him all the way to the door. The hero didn't fight it; if the people wanted him to leave, he'd leave.

"Goodbye!" she said, and this time she did slam the door in his face, and she sighed. It was always stressful when Captain Atomic visited her. You never knew what could possibly lead to him thinking you had become evil. She walked up to her bedroom, which always had been her space, with everyone else forbidden to enter. She sat on her bed and after a lot of thinking, she stood up again and she grabbed a coat out of her closet. She also took her mask with her; she was wearing her costume already.

She didn't pay attention to the com-set on the ground at the closet, which she could easily use to contact Skylar or the Annihilator.

* * *

><p>A smaller town close to Philadelphia was the territory of the Dark Warrior, who liked to watch the city when on the roof of the city hall. It made him feel like he was, literally, standing above the mayor and 'above the law'. There were other buildings, but he did like being on top of the city hall. Just as he liked the fact someone was trying to sneak up on him, which meant he could finally have a fight again. Without any warning, he turned around and ran towards the man behind him. He had no idea Titanio would just step aside, not willing to fight him.<p>

"Good to see you too," Henry Tidwell said, "Why did you want to attack me?" The Dark Warrior turned back around, ready to fight if it was necessary and ready to fight for his amusement.

"With the threat of being turned evil I'm not taking any chances. And if you're not here for those reasons, then I still don't want to join your stupid League!" Titanio shouted. The guy was quite a pain in the ass when it came to talking, especially if he wanted to stay independent.

"I'm here for neither. Stand down." The Dark Warrior glared at the hero, but he gave in eventually. Almost all weapons were dropped on the floor, except for one gun the Warrior kept in his hand. Titanio frowned – which his fellow hero couldn't see because of the helmet – and didn't ask for any explanation, because he knew the Dark Warrior would tell why he kept that one gun instead.

"If you have the guts to call someone else, I hit you with my stun ray." Titanio decided to put off his helmet so he and the Dark Warrior could look each other in the eye.

"I wouldn't have wanted it any other way. So, I came here because I needed to discuss things with you." The Dark Warrior rolled his eyes.

"I already said no!" Titanio sighed and shook his head

"When this is over, there might not be a League of Heroes anymore, so we're not going to discuss that. I wanted to talk to you about the evil heroes. Did you notice that each and every single one of them has superpowers?" the Dark Warrior nodded.

"I think I know where this is heading. But yes, I did notice that. One of them tried to take me, too, but no way they'll ever make me evil!" Titanio nodded.

"They'd have to send Tecton and the Crusher to overpower you," Henry said, "and that one common trait makes me want to seek help with you. You are one of the few Normo heroes I dare to trust."

"What are you suggesting?" the Dark Warrior said, slightly lowering his gun.

"I thought you knew where this is heading?"

"And now you've proven me wrong. Well, continue, I'm waiting." Titanio shook his head again. Sometimes, the Dark Warrior was unbelievable. He really was a master of deception, but still a good guy and easy to understand when he wasn't putting up his defenses and blocked himself from the outside world.

"I want to create an alliance between the two of us, only you and me," he hastily added when he spoke about the alliance, "I know I can trust you because you're not easy to take and because you have no powers. And I swear you can trust me too, because I'm like you, but I am very rich and handsome and want to be in an alliance."

"What's in it for me?" the Dark Warrior said. And Titanio's mouth fell open.

"Are you serious? The world is about to be overrun by evil heroes and you want some reward for being my ally?" The Dark Warrior grinned.

"Just kidding. I'm in! And if I'm not mistaken, that wasn't the only reason you came here. You could've made this agreement over the phone." Titanio nodded – that hero was really good at analyzing the situation, which would be really helpful for the crazy idea of Titanio.

"I need your help," Henry said, "I need someone to help me with a plan which could help the evil heroes."

"I'm listening," the Dark Warrior said, and he finally put away the stun ray. Titanio sighed in relief and explained his plan to the Dark Warrior, who immediately told the leader of the League it was one of the dumbest ideas he had ever heard, but Titanio had just shrugged. There was no need for everyone to know what was going on around there, and in times like these it was best to keep secrets.

"I'm gonna do it anyway, but it's your choice to help me with it," Titanio said. "I could really use you. Even if you decide not to help me with the pan, we're still working together, right?" the Dark Warrior nodded.

"Off course we are. I can't let a Normo be taken as a prisoner of that annihilating freak!"

"So, we have a deal?" Titanio said, extending his hand to the Dark Warrior, who took it.

"Like I just said, off course we have!"

* * *

><p>Solar Flare flew to the roof of one of Philadelphia's skyscrapers. It was later in the evening and as usual, nobody looked up to notice the hero fly over. This made her journey so much easier. She was flying there for only one purpose: despair. After finding Blaylock as a statue, every hero became very careful around other heroes. There was a mole, but nobody knew exactly who it was. Then there was the attack on Surge, because of which the League might be disbanded. All because of distrust. Only the Super-Secret Heroes in Hiding were safe because nobody knew anything about them.<p>

So the despair led her to these skyscrapers, in the hope of finding an ally in these dark times. This possible ally left her a note, which she found and red before she burned the evidence. She may not have the note anymore, but she did remember what was written on it.

_I know you probably don't trust anymore, but I need to know if you can be trusted. Mara, I swear you can trust me. You can find me this evening on the roof at 16__th__Street and Market Street, PNC._ That's all there was. Nobody signed the note, but that wasn't necessary; Solar Flare knew who wrote it because there was only one person who called her Mara.

She landed on the roof of the building he chose and looked over the street and the surrounding buildings. Then, she looked behind her and she saw the writer of the note, when she was certain he hadn't been there before. He came closer and Solar Flare almost flew away as he neared her. "How did you get up here?" she asked.

"I took the elevator," was NeoCortex' answer, "I like the view here. The villains don't come here often, but when they do, they still won't wreck any buildings." He looked at her. "I'm very glad to see you here tonight, Mara." She completely detested the nickname he gave her, but those were the least of her worries right now. She remembered Kaz and Oliver who found out about him and Blue Tornado being evil. She should've flown away when she saw him, but she stayed. She had yet to figure out why.

"Stop talking," she eventually said, backing away from him. NeoCortex frowned.

"I'm sorry, Martina, I can't help it. I…"

"That's not what I meant. I'd better go." She started to hover but delayed actually leaving because of the hero. He looked lost, like he didn't understand what was going on. He came closer and she allowed herself to answer one question, though she feared it might take longer than that. He was her father figure, after all.

"What's wrong?" he asked, and she shook her head.

"It's you, you idiot," she shouted, "You are evil! You wrote the note to lure me here and now you're keeping me here to turn me evil, too!" NeoCortex shook his head and slowly got even closer to her, hands in the air, trying to convince her of his innocence. His eyes didn't meet hers.

"You know," he began, "I wrote you that note to tell you I am not evil, though many believe otherwise. Yes, I was used as bait and I did want to attack the Normos… It was pretense. I never truly was evil and I was able to scare Skylar Storm, the mole – only the Blue Tornado had become evil. I'm only pretending, and I'm doing this for every victim. If I can find out what the Annihilator wants, the others and I can try to stop him and we'd…"

"Stop lying," Solar Flare said, "you're evil. Nothing can change that." With those words, she flew higher, ready to really take off. She shouldn't have stayed this long. But she lingered too long and she still was in hearing range of the newly turned villain.

"Mara, wait! I'm not evil! If I were evil, I wouldn't have let you land. Heck, I wouldn't have even let you talk; I'd shoot you out of the sky and wouldn't bother to catch you, I'd leave you for dead! I would have given you no chance; I would have showed no mercy! But I guess it doesn't matter anymore. I just wanted to be able to trust someone. Goodbye, Martina, and good luck." Solar Flare didn't look back, but his words hit her as if she flew into a wall. He just wanted someone to trust, with everyone thinking he's a bad guy now, and he contacted her of all heroes! I'm gonna regret this, she thought and flew back to the roof, landing a few feet behind NeoCortex, who was ready to leave.

"Michael, wait!" she started to run to him as he turned his head, "Wait! I believe you! I'm sorry for my first reaction, I… I'm a little hot-headed sometimes."

"A little?" he commented and she glared at him, "I know. You are a little too impulsive, too. You should work on that." he advised and she shook her head.

"I'm so sorry I doubted you, but I had to be sure." NeoCortex smiled at her, studying her.

"Always careful, yet always impulsive, too," he said, "A pretty dangerous mix. But you could be really useful." She ignored the signs and just thanked him. Solar Flare had always been quite impulsive, also with this last decision. She didn't think any harm would be done to her when NeoCortex stepped back. One of his stun blasts hit her at full force and she fell on the ground, unconscious. He didn't look at the girl who trusted him and sent a mental message. NeoCortex to Storm. Target unconscious. You can come over.

Almost immediately she appeared and looked at the fallen hero. She then nodded at NeoCortex and smirked.

"Good job." He smirked back.

"She didn't even see it coming."


	13. On both sides

**And now, in this twelfth chapter of the Wave, we return in the evening back to the houses of Kaz and Oliver, both with their own problems and thoughts. We'll see what other heroes do next chapter, but for now I respond to the review and the next chapter will be post in the next few days.**

_LabRatsWhore:_ _Thanks for reviewing, and I'm just making up names for the fictional characters, like Michael for NeoCortex and Martina for Solar Flare - they're not their official names._

**Enjoy!**

**-Writer207**

* * *

><p>Kaz was reading the comic book from the Domain once again, but for the first time he wasn't really paying attention. He read most comic books and was attentive while reading them, but this time, his thoughts wandered off to Oliver.<p>

Oliver Pyne. His best friend since the age of three. Accuses Kaz of working for the Annihilator.

Kaz had no idea where Oliver got that idea. How hard he tried to prove his innocence, Kaz still couldn't make his best friend believe he was framed. He didn't know who did this, but if he knew who framed him, he was going to go over to that person's hide-out and… well, to ask another hero to punish him in his place. Because if it was Tecton, he wasn't gonna go there and try to punish him.

There was a knock on the door, and without asking permission to enter, Karen walked in. Kaz didn't even look up to know it was Karen; he had recognized her because she always knocked once. She was one of the few siblings he could sum up if one asked him to tell the names of his siblings – probably because she was the older sister who cared most about her younger brother. She was the seventh child, he was the eighth and two years younger. She was just finishing her last year at Logan before going off to a university.

"How's it going, bro?" she asked and Kaz shrugged.

"I'm fine," Kaz lied, and Karen shook her head. She took the comic book out of his hands, and he didn't even protest. Karen raised an eyebrow.

"Don't you lie to me, Kazimieras! I know something's wrong. So, what is it?" Kaz sighed. He knew Karen wouldn't stop until she knew what was going on. Sometimes, she seemed a little too worried to truly be a part of the Gordon family, but she absolutely didn't care about having a reputation. Her little brother was feeling down and she was gonna help him the best she could.

"It's Oliver. We work at the same place and…"

"Where was it again?" Karen interrupted Kaz, and he shook his head, not looking up at her.

"I'm not gonna tell. You know I don't want mom, dad or Kyle showing up there. Anyway, we both needed something to help our customers. And we decided to share this and figure out how to use it."

"Then, what's the problem?"

"Oliver found it in my backpack and thinks I found it first and wanted to keep it to myself," was Kaz' honest response. He definitely wanted to tell Karen everything, but he knew he couldn't. She was a Normo and didn't work there, plus it could be dangerous to reveal the secret of Mighty Med to her. Karen bit her lip.

"How did this object end up in your backpack?" she wanted to know, and Kaz shrugged.

"I dunno. But I think I've been framed and now Oliver doesn't believe me anymore. I doubt Oliver and I will still be friends when this is over." Karen was left with thousand and one questions which she probably wouldn't get, and still… she put a hand on her younger brother's shoulder.

"C'mon, bro, cheer up! Maybe it fell into your backpack when no-one was looking. Whatever it is. Why do you even think someone's framing me?"

"Trust me; if I was able to tell you without getting cubed, I'd tell you immediately." Karen frowned. Was it her, or was Kaz losing his mind? What did he mean by 'without getting cubed'? Well, whatever it was, it must not be pretty.

"Okay…" she continued, "well, what is this object?"

"It's a dagger," Kaz said, and then realized his mistake. Karen's eyes widened, ready to exclaim the 'what' which could easily roll of her tongue any second. "It's a fake one. Collector's item. A replica of Optimo's Dagger of Truth." This seemed to calm Karen down, but she did read comic books, too, and if Oliver and Kaz were fighting because of some stupid dagger, then…

"I get it! You work at the Domain, right?" Kaz smiled out of relief. Now he could create the perfect alibi to tell everyone as to where he was working.

"You got me, but you can't see me work – I'm more in the background. And if you do see me there, I'm taking a break." Great. That should be enough for now. And luckily, Karen seemed to believe this lie. He had gotten better at lying and now rarely used the word 'fire'. His older sister nodded.

"I'll keep it in mind." she said, "But hey, no worries. Someone must've seen something that could give you a clue." Kaz nodded. She was right. Someone must've seen something. It can't be nobody saw what happened. Too bad he couldn't rely on Skylar or Oliver to be the witness, because Oliver wasn't there and Skylar's obviously siding with Oliver.

"You're right. But it doesn't matter who saw it; people tend to believe Oliver more than believing me. I'm alone in this. I'm all alone." Karen didn't want to see her little brother be so down, be so saddened by the dagger to help one of the Domain's few customers. She spontaneously sang some lines of a song her friend had sang, and those few lines had stayed with her.

_Baby, you're not alone 'cause you're here with me._

_And nothing's ever gonna bring us down,_

_Cause nothing can keep me from loving you._

_And you know it's true._

_It don't matter what'll come to be, our love is all we need _

_To make it through._

Kaz smiled. Even if Oliver wasn't here to help figure out what to do with the dagger, he could always count on his sister, who now also smiled.

"See?" she began "It's gonna be alright. Now, isn't it time to get to sleep?" Kaz shook his head, still smiling.

"You're not my mom, so I'll sleep whenever I want!" Karen left the room with a big smile on her face, knowing she did something good and helped him to stay a good little boy and hoped none of her older brothers would convince him to take the same dark road as they walked.

* * *

><p>Oliver slammed the door when he came home.<p>

He slammed it to express his anger and frustration about Kaz. He completely ignored the calls of his mother and father and headed straight to his room. He slammed that door, too, not caring if his parents heard him or not. He just wanted to be alone, to figure out how to use the damn dagger so he could help countless heroes and his best friend.

_Kaz, where did you go wrong?_ Oliver sighed. He had always tried to keep Kaz away from all kind of bad influences whenever he could. He didn't want his best friend to end up like his older brothers, and if Oliver hadn't been his best friend, he'd be in jail by now as well.

Someone knocked on the door. Oliver didn't respond, but he did hear a voice speak at the other side of the wooden door. "Oliver, are you alright?" He didn't say anything. His father was the last person he wanted to see right now. Yet, the man entered and seemed very worried. Oliver looked sat down on his bed and looked to the carpet floor between his feet. Charles Pyne sat down next to Oliver.

"What's wrong, son?" he asked and when Oliver didn't answer, he sighed. "If it's me, then I truly am terribly sorry. I wish I had more time for you, for your mother and family. I can't help it I'm a busy man." Oliver shook his head, eyes fixed on that specific place on the carpet.

"It's not you, dad," he said, "It's about Kaz." Charles frowned, but wiped it off his face. He didn't like Kaz' older brothers, but that was no reason to dislike Kaz. Plus, he wanted to help his son.

"Well, then, what's wrong with him?" Oliver wanted to tell his father everything, but he couldn't tell the man about Mighty Med, or else he'd be placed in a cube. Yet, he needed to tell it. If he waited any longer, it could hurt him emotionally more than he wanted. Luckily, he had already made a plan for situations like this.

"Kaz and I are playing in a role playing game. We do it online, and in the weekends some of us meet up. The theme is heroes in danger." Charles frowned again, but because he didn't say anything, Oliver continued. "We had to draw our roles. There's one villain, the Annihilator, and the others are either heroes or one of the ten doctors." That drew his father's attention.

"Doctors?" he asked, and Oliver nodded.

"The creators wanted some doctors in a hospital to heal the wounded heroes. It's completely fictional." he quickly added, "Well, in the role play Kaz and I are doctors and the villain's objective is to make all or most of the heroes evil to fight bravely and take over the world. We are certain that there is a mole that's making all the heroes evil. There are at least five permanent residing in the hospital, and we have to figure out who it is.

Kaz and I thought to do it with Optimo's Dagger of Truth. We were trying to find it, but Kaz had it the whole time. Now I'm starting to think the Annihilator can make anyone evil and not just the heroes. There's absolutely no-one I can trust." Oliver looked at his father. "What should I do?"

Charles thought about the situation his son was in. "So Kaz has the dagger, is possibly working for the Annihilator and you can't trust anyone?" Oliver shook his head.

"No, I have the dagger. I have a replica in my backpack." Charles didn't ask for his son to show it, but he did consider this information along with everything his son has told him. After at least three minutes of silence, Mr. Pyne spoke up.

"If I were you, I would contact Optimo, assuming there's an Optimo in your role play. He sure had to be wounded in battle once and should have gone to the hospital you were talking about. And if that's so, there should be a file in the main computer regarding Optimo, with his hide-out and possibly phone number. You can contact him with trust, because as a member of the Super-Secret Heroes in Hiding nobody knows who he is and thus it's almost impossible for him to become evil. And once you've contacted him, he can show you how to use that Dagger of Truth. Or he could use it himself, that's way easier. Then, you should try it on the hospital staff first, to see if any of them are evil and you should repeat it from time to time, just in case. That's what I would do in your place." Oliver nodded all those time, amazed by his father's astonishing plan. It was brilliant and he wouldn't have thought of it. _Wait a second… what'd he say about Optimo?_

"I never mentioned Optimo was a member of the Super-Secret Heroes in Hiding. How did you know that?" Charles sighed and put a hand on Oliver's shoulder.

"I was young, too, Oliver and in my time, Optimo was the second greatest rising teenage superhero, right behind Tecton. He was my favorite Optimo, not Tecton. But when I was five years older than you now, I realized they weren't for people my age and I started to dislike them. Started to think they're ridiculous. And still I remember every detail about Optimo."

Charles patted his son's back, sighing. "You know what? Enjoy comic books. If you like them, you can read them – but if you have one bad grade because you spent your time at the Domain, I will reconsider this." Oliver nodded. He was glad his father finally accepted his son loved reading comic books (and spending time with them at the Med) and would use the time he had left usefully.

Charles stood up and walked to the door, looking at Oliver before finally leaving. "Oliver, are you coming? Dinner's still ready." He closed the door behind him, and Oliver noted the idea of his father down in a few words, just in case he'd forget about it. This plan was awesome, this plan was great! He couldn't wait to tell Kaz…

Oh, yeah…

_I will help you, Kaz,_ Oliver thought, _I will save you, whatever it takes. _He left his room and went down for dinner.

* * *

><p><strong>I do not own the lyrics written in Kaz' part; Team Starkid does<strong>


	14. The big break-out

**Welcome to the thirteenth chapter of this story! It's night and most people are asleep, except for four heroes, uniting to rescue their master, and one bystander who has decided to help these four heroes. But first, let's respond to the review:**

_LabRatsWhore:_ _Thanks for reviewing! And I just look up the episodes on YouTube because I live in Belgium; they don't air season 2 yet. And I am fairly certain Stan Lee is still alive. And Team Starkid is just a group of adults making parody musicals. You should look them up; you can find their plays on YouTube._

_4everMagic: Me too; I just FOUND it fitting to use in t__hat situation. And thanks for your review!_

**Enjoy!**

**-Writer207**

* * *

><p>The Annihilator did not like being imprisoned in the Mighty Max.<p>

Most people tended to stay away from him, which he thought of as nice. This meant nobody bothered him or spoke to him, except during meals to impress him. This gave him more time for himself to figure something out as an escape plan. He could call Skylar and have him being brought out with a space portal. That would be the easy way.

This was an escape plan, which meant it lacked the spectacular fights so far. And he wanted the world to know he was freed with a show and heroes freeing him, so just calling Skylar won't do it. He wanted a show. He wanted several guards killed. He wanted some idiots freed when nobody's looking (like those foolish Wallace and Clyde) to create more chaos. He wanted at least one guard witnessing what a bunch of heroes could do when they used their powers for evil, and tell the world about it.

That's what he wanted. That's what he told Skylar to do.

That's what he'd get tonight.

* * *

><p>Skylar Storm was waiting in the lair of the Annihilator, looking around. Nothing was left of its former glory. All furniture was destroyed and the powers her master had collected over the years. This place was a mess and it was a miracle (Calderan use). The rest of the rescue party should be here any minute. She left the door unlocked, so the four others could arrive whenever they wanted. But if they were ten minutes late, she'd leave without those who still had to come. They had no time to lose. They planned the escape attempt perfectly, and they couldn't deal with villains coming late.<p>

She really hated if someone was coming late, especially if it involved her one true master.

She turned her head to the port as she heard footsteps nearing. Skylar Storm spent no more time thinking and instinctively turned invisible. That way, she could get out quickly if Kaz and Oliver suddenly decided to come back there. Yet, these three were no Normos. These were people she had learned to know well over the past few weeks. Those three villains arriving consisted of two women and one man, each having their own primary color. The man wore a completely silver costume, while the women had similar costumes, only differing in blue or green combined with black.

Skylar sighed, turned visible again and stepped forward to Silver Shield, Gamma Girl and Snow Storm. She did a quick headcount again. Three were right on time. But the last member of their group, their 'initiate', had yet to arrive.

"Where is he?" she asked; she needn't say his name for the other to know what she was talking about.

"He's there already," Silver Shield explained, "He is going in the normal way. If I'm, correct, he'll wait for us in the elevator down." Skylar nodded. If the initiate didn't want to give up his old life for a while, she was fine. After this big show, he would be a member of the Annihilator's wave and he wouldn't have a choice but follow. Once he got a taste of evil, he'd do it more frequently and would like it.

"What if he betrayed us?" Snow Storm asked, "He can still warn the guards!" Skylar turned her head to the blonde.

"He won't betray us. Yes, he may be a little reluctant, but that will soon change. As long as he thinks he'll get what he wants, he will do this. And if he does quit, he won't live to tell the heroes about it." Skylar opened a space-portal – they really needed to hurry right now – and the others went first before she too walked through her space-portal. When the four villains stood in the elevator with the initiate, Skylar closed her portal, untraceable as ever. When she turned to the initiate, she saw him gaping at Gamma Girl after taking off his blue helmet.

"I suppose you chose the easy way to get it?" Skylar asked, and Titanio nodded.

"Yes, I did. Oh, and I also borrowed this," he showed a device the guards used to generate force fields to keep the prisoners in their cell. Skylar nodded when she saw the device and smiled an evil smile.

"And by borrowing, you mean stealing. Continue like that and you'll go very far." Titanio looked away and put the device away. He really did borrow it, not stealing it. It needed to stay believeable. He felt a little awkward in the group, and he couldn't help but to stare at Gamma Girl. _Where did we go wrong?_ He asked._ And why did it have to be you?_

"What's the matter, big guy?" Gamma Girl asked when she noticed Titanio was staring, "Feeling uneasy here?" Not ready to share his feelings with them just yet, his head turned red. He put his helmet back on his head and turned his head. He took a deep breath, looking at Skylar, being glad Skylar didn't decide to bring Michael with her; he'd get something was wrong.

_I need to focus,_ Henry told himself. _I can get used to this. And it's only for a short period of time. When this is done, I get what I want and I can leave this behind me. I can start over._ Gamma Girl smirked, liking the way Titanio reacted. With a final 'ding', the elevator stopped and the doors slid open.

With Skylar going first, the four heroes turned villains and the initiate stepped out of the elevator, startling the guards awaiting them. They thought only Titanio was coming down, but apparently he got some visitors when standing in the elevator. They most certainly hadn't expected Skylar Storm to come over, the white strike clearly visible in her hair.

Snow Storm and Gamma Girl made the first moves. They swiftly attacked and knocked the guards out before they could react. They ran as fast as they could to the stairs, which would lead them to their eventual destination. They would also be in full view of every guard present, but they did want to draw attention and make a show out of something simple as freeing a prisoner. They wouldn't be hit, though; that was Silver Shield's purpose, why Skylar chose him. Titanio offered to help, and she gave him the task to create a distraction and to get used to the idea of being evil. Snow Storm and Gamma Girl were excellent fighter, which is why Skylar and the two others would do the fighting. Skylar's task was to free the Annihilator and kill everyone who stood in her way.

"Cover us!" Skylar yelled and Silver Shield stopped running. He turned his back to his evil comrades and faced the guards coming towards them. He lifted his hands in the air, seemingly giving up, but after seconds of concentration a silver tinted force field appeared, separating the evil heroes and initiate from the guards, who desperately tried to break the force field, only to be taken when Silver Shield was knocked out. And the screams of the guards and the sound of them hitting his force field, his 'silver shield', made him happy and helped him concentrate. Luckily all guards with the power of teleportation were injured and up at the Mighty Med.

* * *

><p>At one point, the group split up again. The girls made their way to the Annihilator while Titanio would free two idiots to create a distraction; Catastrophe, even when two stupid Normos, still was more of a threat than the Annihilator. Titanio ran as fast as he could to the hallway where they kept Wallace and Clyde, along with other villains. As he passed the cells of the prisoners, he created a curiosity and they started to yell at the hero. When he eventually reached the cell of the twin, he saw one guard standing near them. One guard with a large head. Henry's face paled, but the guard didn't see it with the helmet he was wearing. <em>No, not Philip! <em>Yet, it indeed was Philip who shot up and grabbed his taser, pointing it at Titanio. The guard was just as surprised as the hero.

"Don't move." Philip said. He had heard the alarms, he heard the news about five heroes who broke in and hurt a lot of guards. Too bad Titanio was one of them; he was one of the few who was nice for him. Titanio lifted his hands in the air and sighed, pointing them at Philip. "I'm serious!" the guard said.

"I'm so sorry for this, Philip. But I have no choice." With one shot, the guard fell on the ground, knocked out by Titanio's blast. Before proceeding with the plan, he knelt down and looked if Philip had some serious injuries. Luckily, he was just unconscious and fine; he wouldn't be able to forgive himself if he really was hurt. He quickly removed the force field keeping Wallace and Clyde in, and if he wasn't a hero, he would've cried. He was supposed to help people and imprison them, not to hurt and free them from prison.

"Go before I change my mind." Titanio said, and he walked out. He ignored the shouts of the other villains, begging the hero turned villain to set them free too. Yet, it was only the twin he had to free; one mistake could mean the end for him. _Calm down,_ Henry thought, _Just a few more days. A few more days. Then it's over._

* * *

><p>Everything was going according to plan. With Silver Shield and Titanio out to distract the guards, the three female villains proceeded to go to their true master, who soon no longer needed to be behind bars. Snow Storm and Gamma Girl would do most of the fighting, because Skylar had to focus on the most important task of all: to free the Annihilator.<p>

Skylar Storm continued to walk as she heard how Gamma Girl and Snow Storm give everything they had and were getting rid of all the guards they could take care of. She soon found the Annihilator's cell and she smiled at him evilly when he noticed they finally were here. He wanted to say 'what took you so long?' but eventually didn't. She was standing here, as promised, and that's what counted.

A guard managed to get past Snow Storm and Gamma Girl and now tried to stun Skylar Storm. Yet, she kicked the unfortunate guard in his stomach and when he landed with his back on the ground, his life was over. He was killed by Skylar's deadliest word. "Explode!" the man exploded into a million pieces, and she didn't even look back to see how far the blood flew.

The force field separating them from the Annihilator was conjured by an electronic device and thus Skylar couldn't just turn it off and get her master out. Yet, she still did have the power to create space portals and with one simple move, the Annihilator was freed. He did look at the damage of the guard who dared to attack his favorite servant.

"Good job," he said, "Let's go." The Annihilator and the three ladies left the prison, surrounded by the unconscious or dead corpses of the guards. They walked out as if it was just a stroll in the park. After greeting his master with a bow, Silver Shield covered them with a force field. Titanio would join them at the meeting point, where they would meet after the initiate retrieved his new master's power cannon.

Their meeting point was Tidwell Manor, a nice gift of their newest member. He offered some rooms to function as the Annihilator's new lair, and there were still several other heroes who are still good living there. Titanio knew nothing of their plans to make the residents evil, but he did guess they would take this opportunity to do it.

Titanio knew he didn't have any choice. And yet, he was the one wanting to join by faking his evilness which made Skylar contact him so he could ask for a position in the evil army of the Annihilator.


	15. Confrontation

**And here's the next chapter of The Wave: Confrontation! L****et's go back to school with Kaz and Oliver! Updates might get less frequent due to my busy schedule, but hopefully you won't have to wait long.**

_LabRatsWhore:_ _Thanks for reviewing! And I don't really have much choice but to look it up on YouTube (I totally love Future Tense). Ah, yes, the food... I like Brussel's sprouts, too. _

**Enjoy!**

**-Writer207**

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><p>The next morning wasn't anything special for most, except two Normo doctors at a superhero hospital. But it wasn't like yesterday, either. This time, they weren't hiding from each other, which was already a big improvement. It was only a beginning and it was small, but all small things can help them improve their relationship.<p>

Both Oliver and Kaz had been preparing what to say to the other. Oliver would just tell him about what he learned, but only when he was a hundred percent sure Kaz was Kaz, which was a very small chance. Kaz, on the other hand, was going to lie about what happened the past days. He didn't like lying to his friend and needed a lot of concentration not to use 'fire' a lot, but this was absolutely the only way Oliver would believe him.

He made sure he was trembling when he entered the school building. Kaz knew Oliver would be there and so also made sure Oliver saw Kaz trembling and made it look like he was not feeling at ease in this building, looking around constantly for something he might just imagine. Oliver frowned; something was really wrong with his former best friend. Why else would he clearly be scared of everything around him?

When Kaz saw Oliver, a smile appeared on his face, only to be soon replaced with worry. Hastily, Kaz walked to his best friend – he almost stumbled his way to him. Before Oliver could stop his best friend, Kaz grabbed him by his shoulders, looking at his best friend as if he had been missing for a very long time.

"Oliver…" he began, "Oliver, I'm so sorry. Are you hurt? Are you okay? Please tell me you're okay." His words stumbled out of his mouth with the same manner he had walked over to Oliver. Confused by his actions, Oliver took Kaz' arms and forced his former best friend to stop holding him. And yet, he wouldn't do that or say those words if everything is okay.

"Kaz? What's going on?" He said, and Kaz shook his head.

"Not here… not now! The walls have ears and everyone, everyone, can listen to us talking. Can we please go to a place where we can talk alone?" With everything that happened the past few days, Oliver didn't dare to believe Kaz' words. But he could clearly hear the desperation in his voice and even saw it in his eyes. Something was wrong with his friend, and he wanted to know what it was.

"Alright. Let's go." And the two walked to a hallway where almost nobody came through, because this was the hallway leading to the cafeteria and that special room was only accessible during lunch break. And now Kaz and Oliver were there, with minimum risk of being eavesdropped. Kaz repeated his lines in his head. _Don't forget: it's acting, it's not lying. _

"So what is it you wanted to tell me?" Oliver asked, and Kaz started to nod and look at Oliver.

"You were right, man. You were right, all along!" Kaz almost shouted these words because his act required it, and he made sure to sound very desperate – a little trick he learned from his brothers. "The Annihilator… he… he…" he started trembling, and shook his head several times, looking close to crying. That's when Oliver realized what Kaz was trying to say.

"He made you evil," Oliver said. He felt great because he was right all along, but was saddened to see his best friend like that. Being evil must've really hurt him. "Are you okay?" he added after a while when Kaz still shook his head.

"No, Oliver, I'm not okay!" He almost shouted again, "You have no idea how hard it is. I remember everything I did. I definitely didn't want to hurt anyone, b-but I had no choice. I didn't want this. You have to help me." He had grabbed Oliver's shoulders again, and his friend nodded.

"I will help you, Kaz. Don't worry about that." Still, Kaz wasn't too convinced. He had to live without Oliver's support and trust for a while, and now he needed a little more attention before he'd let the boy go. He pretended not to hear Oliver.

"Something in me snapped, just like in Tecton. I… it was when my sis was talking to me, I think… Wait… oh no! what if the Annihilator can turn off my evilness? What if I become evil once more? I don't wanna be evil, Oliver! It's the most terrible thing to feel in the world! Please, Oliver, help me! No, don't help me. I don't want to hurt you. Stay away from me." In the last seconds, he improvised. He was about to run away (part of his improvisation exercise), but Oliver stopped him.

"Kaz, wait!" he used such a powerful voice that Kaz indeed stayed with his best friend. "No, you're not going to stay away from me. I'll help you with it, I promise." Finally Kaz nodded, agreeing with Oliver, thanking him for his support and trust. And he was relieved – now he didn't need to keep up his act and could act like he normally would – only a little more dramatic because of the act he just performed.

"Who made you evil?" Oliver asked, and Kaz shrugged.

"I dunno. They caught me from behind. I also wasn't allowed to know which heroes were evil, for safety reasons – he didn't really trust me, being a Normo. Also, I was turned evil in the Med." Kaz sighed. Hopefully he had now thought of anything and wouldn't contradict himself in the future. In the meantime, Oliver shook his head. There had to be a way to know who was making all those heroes and his best friend evil…

"Maybe the security cameras can help!" Oliver said, but Kaz shook his head.

"Have you ever seen cameras hanging around there?"

"Kaz, we're talking about the most advanced hospital in the world. Sure they'll have security cameras, but I bet they're so small we haven't seen it yet." Kaz nodded eventually; that could work.

"You're right! Oliver, you're a genius!"

"I know," Oliver said. "We'll figure this out together. Now come on, before we get caught. I assume you'll stay calm during class?" Kaz smiled.

"I'll manage." And the two left. Oliver was too occupied with Kaz' little act he completely forgot to share the plan his father told him about. But there sure was going to be another time he would be able to tell him about the Optimo-plan.

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><p>When Skylar entered the school building, during one of her last days here, she couldn't see Kaz and Oliver anywhere. Something told her this was suspicious. Kaz and Oliver couldn't stand each other the last time she saw them, so they both should be here, hiding from each other, far enough for safety but close enough to keep an eye on the other. She scanned the main hall again, but there was no sign of the two Normo doctors.<p>

_They might be at home,_ she thought. They both didn't dare to come to school. But another part of her mind rejected this theory. Kaz wouldn't skip school only because he has a dispute with Oliver, and Oliver would never skip school at all. So there must be something else going on between them. The Annihilator had given her the job to keep an eye on the two boys when at school, and she wasn't going to fail him. She was not going to fail her master.

Before even taking one extra step, she got a call. Frustrated, she took her phone and looked who called her. She recognized the telephone number as Henry Tidwell's private number. She did take the call anyway. "What is it, Henry? Make it quick." She sure wasn't going to call him Titanio, and certainly not on a place with so many listening ears.

"The Annihilator wants you to come back home." Skylar sighed.

"Why? I have a job to do."

"And now he gave you another job. He's giving you Alan." Skylar sighed again, this time even more frustrated than the previous time.

"Why can't you do it? Or Martina? Or Michael?" Heroes normally knew each other with their first names, too, just in case they met each other outside their 'work'.

"They both tried and they both gave up. He's just a teenage boy and the Annihilator thinks that by making you his tutor, Alan would gain more experience against more powers. And you've got 24 of them, so…"

"I'm not doing it!" she said, "I already have a mission! I lost Kaz and Oliver at school and I want to find out where they are right now."

"Skylar, please, do as he says. He is our leader. He's already sending someone else to take care of Oliver and Kaz so you can focus on teaching Alan." There was a long silence before Skylar sighed again.

"Fine. I'll be there in ten minutes." She hung up and turned around. It appears she wouldn't be taught English and math today. She put her phone back in her pocket and turned around, back to the main entrance. She didn't get a lot of looks – they weren't interested in the new student Connie Valentine – but there were two Normos who noticed her leave.

"Connie? Where are you going?" Jordan asked as she and Gus walked in. she hesitated to answer, but recovered rather quickly, answering as fast as she could so she could be at Tidwell Manor in time.

"I need to go to Alan. He's been ill since his first day here and I forgot I was going to look after him today. I need to go home." She walked away from them without saying another word.

"Say 'hi' from me!" Gus shouted to her, but Skylar ignored him. She couldn't use any hesitation or hold-up, because she needed to train Alan even if she knew nothing of how to control those powers. When she was sure nobody saw her, she jumped up and flew through the sky to Tidwell Manor.

In school, Jordan and Gus were wondering what was up with her. They had a conversation, and came to the conclusion Connie was hiding something very important from them. And Jordan, wanting to know what Connie is hiding, decided to go follow her around after she finished school, because if she skipped school again, she had to join a club at school and then she would have even less time for the Domain. Gus needed to stay at school, too, or else he wouldn't get his monthly money anymore. He didn't want to say how much it was, but it was a lot.

They had to stay in school, just as Oliver and Kaz, and the four of them having separated thoughts while Skylar served as Alan's opponent during his training.


	16. When you look closely

**Welcome to chapter number fifteen, and thank you for sticking with me so far! Things get really interesting because when you look closely, you might find details which can help you in the end, even if they're really obvious in this chapter (I hope). But first, I'll reply to the reviewer: **

_LabRatsWhore:_ _Yeah, he sure is up to something: he did want to destroy the world. And Kaz needed to be 'intense' so Oliver would finally believe him, and thanks for your review!_

**Enjoy!**

**-Writer207**

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><p>After school, Oliver and Kaz quickly hurried to the school. Kaz didn't keep up his act, making Oliver believe he made a difference and helped keeping Kaz calm during the day. And now, they would be on their way to the hospital so Kaz could try and find out who had 'turned him evil'.<p>

The plan was simple. They'd arrive at the same time, but they would go their separate ways before starting to work. Oliver would keep Horace busy and stand guard while Kaz would try to find out who the mole is by use of the security cameras. And in the meantime, he could also try to find out who framed him.

They walked into Mighty Med, and Kaz immediately went to search for the room they needed instead of taking care of Surge, who still needed a lot of good care and still was unconscious after being found in Tidwell Manor. Oliver stayed around in the lobby, and when he wanted to follow Kaz (so it wouldn't look too suspicious) he was held back by Horace.

"Oliver! There you are! I needed to tell you something very important!" Oliver nodded.

"Sure! What is it?"

"The guards still haven't found Alan yet," Horace said, sighing. "Nobody knows what he's done or why he left. If he left. If you find him, tell me. Understood?" Oliver nodded again. He didn't really care about Alan right now, but he would definitely tell Horace what he knew about Alan if he saw the super again. When he wanted to leave, Horace still stopped him.

"Also, I just had a terrible call from the Mighty Max. The Annihilator has escaped." Oliver's eyes widened.

"What!?"_ Oh no! This can't be true! _Thousands of thoughts raced through his mind, but this is a summary: _this is the worst news ever; Kaz might turn evil again; I'm in complete denial; now even more villains will be born._ Horace walked away from the startled boy, resuming his tasks as the chief of staff.

He completely forgot to guard the control room because of this news. Instead, he absentmindedly went to check upon Surge, who hadn't woken up until now.

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><p>Kaz walked around the hospital, trying to find the control room. Hey, if this hospital gets attacked at least once a week, they sure wanted to know how these villains got in. with the current crisis, it was possible one of the guards working here was evil as well. Kaz really hoped nobody deleted the tapes of last week, or then he was screwed. He once opened all doors (trying to find the Door of Doom) and ended up in the control room once before, so it couldn't be that hard to find.<p>

And eventually, he did end up opening the door leading to the control room, where they checked the images filmed by the security cameras almost nobody can see. And eventually, he did end up stopping in his tracks when he saw a guard sitting there.

"Philip!" Kaz said when Philip turned his head. "What are you doing here?" Philip stood up out of his chair.

"I work here. What are you doing here?" After the attack of last night, the head of guards decided to go easy on him for the next couple of days and sent him to the control room, which always suffered from the minimum of attacks. Kaz stuttered.

"I work here too." Was his answer, and Philip shook his head.

"I meant: what are you doing in this room?" He explained, "Only guards are allowed to be in here." Kaz shrugged and realized he just had to improvise.

"Why?" Now Philip looked at him, surprised.

"You know I can't tell you because it's so obvious. Now, leave!" Kaz shrugged again and was about to leave until he realized he just had to find something he couldn't lie about and have Philip to believe. Eventually, this is what came out of his mouth.

"Pity. But I can tell you there are donuts in the cafeteria." Technically, he wasn't lying, because the cafeteria served donuts to the guards today. It may be a hard stereotype, but the guards at the Mighty Med really enjoyed eating donuts. Which is why Kaz was surprised by Philip's uncaring reaction.

"So?"

"So?" Kaz repeated, "Aren't you hungry?"

"I am hungry," Philip explained, "but I don't like donuts." Kaz could've face palmed if he didn't have to be in here and wasn't just 'lying' to gain access to the footage, waiting to be viewed on one of the three computer screens.

"Then what do you like?" Kaz eventually asked. "There are also other things in the cafeteria." Philip didn't have to think about that question.

"I like apples." _Trust my luck,_ Kaz thought as he put a smile on his face.

"Well, there are apples in the cafeteria." And now Philip smiled as well. He liked Kaz, warning him about snacks when he was just getting hungry. What a nice lad…

"Why didn't you tell me this earlier? Thanks!" And Philip walked out of the control room, not even caring about the fact he was leaving the control room unguarded with only Kaz around. That just spelled disaster, but Philip was hungry and he needed to eat.

"You're welcome!" Kaz yelled as Philip hurried to the cafeteria, and he snickered, "Wait until you see you can't eat those apples." Horace had just ordered some iPads to be used by the staff, but Horace only called them by the company that made them: 'Apple'. So, yeah, there were apples in the cafeteria; just not the ones Philip was hoping for. Kaz sat down on the same spot as Philip sat and he quickly searched for the footage of a few days ago. Luckily, Philip let an important program opened on the computer, granting Kaz access to the footage from last month. Kaz smiled.

"Let's see here…" He went to the day that Oliver found the Dagger of Truth in his backpack, and he skipped back to the time when they arrived in the Mighty Med. Kaz saw how he was boring himself in the lobby, and then came Skylar in. he talked to her, and then Citadel fell out of his wheelchair, and Kaz on screen helped him out. While he and a nurse forced the hero back on his wheelchair, Skylar took the Dagger from behind her back and put it in Kaz' backpack.

Kaz frowned. "Skylar? Why would Skylar do something like that?" He decided to skip backwards to some scene in the lobby, and Kaz picked the moment when NeoCortex was turned evil. He watched attentively as they made a decoy from the hero and placed the phone on the counter instead of their pants. The two left, and Skylar came into the lobby, using super-speed. She used the contamination device to turn Neo evil and then noticed Oliver's phone, changing the message.

"What the heck!? She…" Kaz began, but he quickly turned silent. Nobody was allowed to hear him being in here, or else he couldn't gather the proof that he wasn't working with the Annihilator. He skipped back some time, until he saw the Annihilator and Skylar Storm in their private moment before he was taken to the Mighty Max. Kaz couldn't believe his ears when he heard the words the two used to talk to each other.

Kaz sighed in desperation. "Oh no! Skylar's the mole! She's working for the Annihilator. Oliver needs to see this." He quickly put one of the two flash drives he took with him in the right port and downloaded the footage onto it. He patiently waited the time it took to download it times two and when he was done, he had two copies of the footage. He nodded when the last download was complete, and he took back the second flash drive.

"And now to show this to Oliver-ah!" He screamed the last part, because suddenly Skylar Storm was standing in the doorway. She had crossed her arms and was looking at him with that stern expression she always used when she thought he was doing something incredibly wrong.

"Skylar!" Kaz said surprised, "What are you doing here?" Skylar sighed.

"I thought Philip was here. What are you doing here?" He was in big trouble now. With his newfound knowledge, he just had to lie hard. But if he lied hard, he would use 'fire' a lot and she would know he was lying. So he came to one solution which, in his eyes, was the best.

"I'm not going to tell you." Yes, that was the best solution he could come up with. Skylar nodded at the middle computer screen.

"Then you shouldn't have left the file open you were looking at." She pushed Kaz out of the way and pressed 'play'. Kaz, seeing the danger was increasing each second, tried to sneak out, but Skylar was one step ahead of him. She closed the door with her telekinesis and Kaz almost walked into it. "You're not going anywhere."

"I know what you are. And I will tell Oliver about you." Skylar huffed after Kaz boldly said this.

"Please. Who do you think he'll believe: your or me?" Kaz shrugged again.

"At this moment, I think he'll believe me, especially after I show him this." He took the flash drive in his hand and showed it at Skylar. He didn't think that she would destroy it by exploding it, but she did. He looked at the remains of the flash drive and then looked back at the villainess. "Now I'm starting to think it wasn't a good idea to show you."

Skylar crossed her arms. "Oliver will never believe you." Kaz shook his head. He was sure Oliver would believe him, even without that flash drive.

"Why is that?" he dared to asked and she slowly advanced to him, cornering him eventually in the corner farthest away from the door. Skylar said: "Because you broke in here to destroy the evidence and I busted you." Kaz frowned, confused by her words.

"No, I haven't. I busted you!" He said, disagreeing with her. Skylar sighed. Why didn't he believe she was just going to tell Oliver the lies so he wouldn't trust Kaz anymore.

"But he will believe me if I tell him I stopped you by knocking you unconscious but couldn't stop you from deleting the files." Kaz was forced down to sit in the corner because Skylar came a little too close to him. And he still didn't really understand what she meant.

"But I didn't – oh!" Yeah, then he understood. He smiled because he finally got it, but it disappeared as soon as he saw her purple fingertips. As a comic book fan, along with the fact he had put up an evil smile, he immediately knew what that meant. "Wait, don't-" He was cut off when the fingertips touched his head. A wave of sleepiness crashed over him and when he closed his eyes, he couldn't open his eyes and not a second later he lost all sense of space and time as the dark took him in.


End file.
